President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday encouraged Italian companies to view Türkiye as a strategic gateway to Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, mirroring how Turkish businesses regard Italy as a key entry point to Europe.
Türkiye's economy continues to grow despite conflict and wars in the region as well as the devastating earthquake of 2023, Erdoğan said during a business forum in Rome.
Noting that the world is going through a period where greater protectionism and turning inward are being discussed in the economy, he said: "We are all following the mutual showdowns taking place over customs tariffs. We are striving to manage this dynamic environment successfully for the Turkish economy and even turn it into an opportunity.”
"We emerged unscathed from similar past challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, we believe we will achieve the same success and have full confidence in the Turkish economy,” he added.
Ankara is determined to implement its economic program, Erdoğan said, adding that it is committed to both improving the investment climate and implementing structural reforms.
"We believe it would be in our best interest to increase our joint efforts, particularly to secure our share in the expected expansion of the security and defense sector in Europe,” the president said.
Highlighting the importance of the 3rd Term Meeting of the Türkiye-Italy Joint Economic and Trade Committee, which will take place before the end of 2025, Erdoğan said: "We feel the need to update our Customs Union with the EU in a way that aligns with changing global economic conditions in order to realize the full potential of our trade and economic relations."
Emphasizing that they expect the support of the Italian government and business circles for an update that would benefit both sides under a win-win approach, he added: "On the other hand, we see that the difficulties our business community faces regarding visas are hindering our economic relations. I believe it would be in both parties’ interest for the Italian business community to raise this issue with EU institutions. In conclusion, I believe that today’s business forum will pave the way for new ventures and strong partnerships."
Türkiye and Italy signed a series of pacts on Tuesday covering such diverse areas as trade, industrial investments, space, culture, sports, social services, archives, transportation, and defense.
The memoranda of understanding followed the Fourth Türkiye-Italy Intergovernmental Summit, co-chaired by Erdoğan and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Key agreements included a Joint Ministerial Statement between the Turkish Trade Ministry and Italy's Foreign Ministry to strengthen trade ties.
Another memorandum of understanding was signed between the Turkish Industry and Technology Ministry and Italy's Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy to enhance cooperation in science, technology, innovation, industry, and investment.
Other notable memoranda of understanding include those between the Turkish Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency for peaceful space activities, as well as one between the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry and Italy's Culture Ministry to combat the illicit trade of cultural property.
Additional agreements covered inter-museum cooperation, the promotion of archaeological heritage, and cooperation between the Turkish State Archives and the Italian Culture Ministry's Archives Directorate.
Another memorandum of understanding was also signed between the Turkish Youth and Sports Ministry and Italy's Sports and Youth Ministry, along with a cooperation agreement between Türkiye's Family and Social Services Ministry and Italy's Disabilities Ministry.
The Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Ministry and the Italian Infrastructure and Transport Ministry also signed a memorandum of understanding to further strengthen transportation cooperation.
Lastly, a preliminary protocol was signed between Baykar, a leading Turkish drone manufacturer, and Leonardo, one of Europe's largest defense companies.
