A joint action plan between Türkiye and Saudi Arabia to facilitate trade was signed during the World Customs Organization (WCO) Council meeting held in Brussels, according to a statement on Saturday.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Trade Minister Sezai Uçarmak, and the ministry shared the details related to it on its NSosyal account.

The statement said that Uçarmak attended the 147th and 148th Sessions of the WCO Council, which brought together the heads of customs administrations from 187 member countries and senior representatives of international organizations.

It noted that the meeting addressed key issues, including the future of global trade, data-driven customs management, artificial intelligence, e-commerce, and secure supply chains, while the organization’s work was also presented to member countries for their views.

The statement highlighted that Uçarmak held a meeting with Suhail Abnami, the governor of Saudi Arabia’s Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority, during which they had talks focused on developing road transit corridors connecting Türkiye with the Gulf region, the effective implementation of the TIR system, and facilitating regional and bilateral trade.

"Following the meeting, a Joint Action Plan was signed between our countries to accelerate the process of mutual recognition of Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) programs," it said.

Moreover, it added that the deputy minister also held bilateral discussions with counterparts from the customs administrations of Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Hungary, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Maldives, Syria, Georgia, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, and Iran, during which bilateral relations were discussed.