Turkey and Greece have signed a protocol to enhance bilateral trade relations and cooperation in several fields, the Turkish Trade Ministry said on Tuesday.

The fifth meeting of the Turkish-Greek Joint Economic Committee (JEC) took place in Athens and the fifth Term Protocol of the JEC was signed at the end of the meeting.

Deputy Trade Minister Mustafa Tuzcu led the Turkish delegation while Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy Kostas Frangogiannis headed the Greek representatives.

Turkey’s Trade Ministry issued a statement via Twitter that the protocol was signed between Tuzcu and Frangogiannis.

The parties welcomed the revival of the commission, with its last meeting taking place in Ankara more than 11 years ago in October 2010.

The delegations discussed many issues concerning the two neighboring countries, including improving the bilateral trade volume, encouraging companies to develop joint ventures in Greece and Turkey, strengthening energy cooperation as well as cooperation in the transportation sector.

Improved joint moves against climate change, environmental protection and the resumption of bilateral cooperation in research and technology were also among the matters the parties discussed.

Especially concerning the tourism field, both sides expressed satisfaction with the progress made in the area during the fourth session of the Turkish-Greek Joint Tourism Committee meeting on Nov. 18, 2021, and the ninth Hellenic-Turkish Forum on Tourism that took place on Nov. 17, 2021, in Turkey's Aegean province of Izmir.

The statement underlined that the parties reiterated their commitment to exploring ways to strengthen tourism cooperation and increase tourist flow between the countries.

It is considered that the fifth JEC meeting will play an important role in maintaining the positive momentum in trade and economic relations with the country.

In line with the increasing trade and economic relations with the European Union in 2021, Turkey’s trade and economic relations with its neighbor Greece also increased.

The trade volume between Turkey and Greece stood at $5.2 billion (TL 70.5 billion) in 2021 with a 69.2% increase year-over-year. The trade volume between the two countries has tripled since 2005.

Exports to Greece increased by 73.3% in 2021, resulting in a trade surplus of approximately $1 billion.