"Turkey and Italy are friends, allies and strategic partners". This was stated by Turkish Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Director General for European Union Affairs, Mehmet Kemal Bozay, emphasising that "the volume of bilateral trade (of Turkey) with Italy amounts to almost 30 billion dollars" and "bilateral investments reach 6 billion dollars". Addressing Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani and the Italian business community in a video message ahead of the National Conference on Export and Internationalisation of Businesses, Bozay said that relations between Ankara and Rome 'in all fields strengthen our cooperation and offer us fertile ground for further collaboration in new emerging fields, mainly in the green deal and digitalisation'.
Turkey, "as an EU candidate country", is committed to strengthening economic and trade relations with the EU, Bozay said, adding that "the modernisation of the Customs Union will contribute to this goal. We count on Italy's support in this regard'.
"The situation in the Middle East, the war in Ukraine, the risks related to energy, water and food security, the need to strengthen global connectivity and supply chains call for an in-depth dialogue between Turkey and Italy at multiple levels. Our cooperation in the fields of energy, twin transitions, climate change, agriculture, water and research and development will be crucial to ensure Europe's economic security, which will be a vital priority in the near future. As two Mediterranean countries, we will continue to strengthen our bilateral ties, contribute to international peace and security, and propose innovative and sustainable solutions in our region for our common prosperous future," Bozay said.
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