Türkiye expects a surge in trade with the U.S., a top economy official said Saturday, following recent talks with American counterparts in the wake of ongoing global discussions related to tariffs.
"We held videoconference meetings at the ministerial level and conveyed our country's position, expectations and demands regarding the tariff increases initiated by the U.S. In our second meeting, it was a constructive and sincere discussion on both sides," Trade Minister Ömer Bolat told a forum in eastern Erzurum province.
"The genuine stance of both parties on increasing Türkiye-U.S. trade and investments has pleased us," he added.
"We will continue our meetings, but our expectation is that in this new period, there will hopefully be a significant leap and increase in Türkiye-U.S. trade, both in terms of export and import," Bolat said in an address at Palandöken Economic Forum.
His remarks came following the talks held a day earlier and as he said that Ankara is closely following the new U.S. trade policies and is ready to remain and work in close dialogue.
Türkiye is among the economies subject to the lowest "reciprocal" U.S. tariff of 10% and is viewed as being among a handful of countries emerging as potential winners.
Bolat said on Friday he held a teleconference meeting with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer "to further develop trade and economic relations between Türkiye and the United States."
"During the meeting, which was very productive, we congratulated both Secretary Lutnick and Ambassador Greer for their new positions and emphasized our strong will to further advance the economic cooperation between the two countries," Bolat wrote on X.
He noted that they reaffirmed a readiness to realize the $100 billion trade volume target set previously by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. President Donald Trump.
"We also expressed the goal of increasing mutual cooperation in many fields such as energy and infrastructure, automotive, textile and apparel, agriculture, health, digital economy, chemistry," he said.
He also noted U.S. officials said they are aware of the critical importance of Türkiye as a trade and investment partner for the United States and that they are ready to work together and are open to new ideas and proposals to cooperate in increasing the trade volume to develop partnerships in new areas.
"We plan to meet with Secretary Lutnick and Ambassador Greer in person soon," Bolat also said.
"Before this occasion, we, as the trade ministers of both countries, also agreed to hold the Trade and Investment Council meeting next month at the technical level between the Turkish Trade Ministry and the USTR. As Türkiye and the U.S., we will continue to work together to further advance our mutual trade," he concluded.
