Mewlet Chauzonalu (Jakarta Post)
Ankara
Monday, August 9, 2021
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Asia, once the cradle of some ancient civilizations, is once again playing an important role on the world stage. As it is home to the world’s youngest population and the most vibrant economies, the center of gravity of the global economy is directed towards Asia.
We have a long history of relations with Asian countries and deeply rooted relationships. We are proud of our Asian roots and our role as gateways to two major continents, Asia and Europe.
Today, our goal is to restructure our cooperation with Asia through our New Asia Initiative launched in 2019.
ASEAN occupies a key position in our foreign policy for Asia. We formed a sectoral dialogue partnership with ASEAN in 2017. It enables us to further enhance our cooperation on a wide range of issues ranging from tourism to trade.
Today’s third Turkey-ASEAN tripartite meeting will be an important opportunity for all these areas of cooperation to take up our concrete ideas and proposals.
As the fifth largest economy in the world, ASEAN has an impact beyond Asia. Together with China and India, ASEAN makes a significant contribution not only to the growth of Asia but also to the growth of the world economy.
Turkey is the center of attraction in its region and beyond. Although the epidemic, like the rest of the world, is a great challenge for us, we can achieve economic growth in 2020 as a clear indication of the resilience and vitality of the Turkish economy.
Like many ASEAN countries, the private sector and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the engine of our growth. A young and educated people, a great asset for us to achieve sustainable growth.
Turkey not only connects the East and the West, but also connects the North and the South. Istanbul is the regional headquarters of multinational corporations in 25 countries around the world. With a four-hour flight from Turkey, it can reach 1.5 billion people and a gross domestic product (GDP) of $ 24 billion.
This makes Turkey a center of economic power with a rapidly growing market, a business-friendly environment and a dynamic private sector.
Likewise, with the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, ASEAN has established itself as a gateway to a market of more than two billion people.
There is tremendous unused energy to significantly improve our economic cooperation. We take concrete steps to use this capacity:
- Turkey has opened embassies in all 10 ASEAN member states. We are pleased to host eight of the ten ASEAN embassies in Ankara.
- We have established strategic partnerships with Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.
- Free Trade Agreements (FTA) are in force with Malaysia and Singapore. Similar agreements are being negotiated with Thailand and Indonesia. The FDA’s expansion with Malaysia is on track to include services, e-commerce, and investment.
- In recent years, Turkish Airlines has diversified its objectives to six ASEAN countries and increased air frequencies to facilitate travel and business communications.
We see the positive results of these actions in the growing interest of the Turkish business community and investors in ASEAN. We are pleased to receive more and more trade representatives from ASEAN in Turkey.
Trade and investment are the main engines of our bilateral relations. But our vision is not limited to this. We also aim to build strong ties in security, political dialogue, sustainable development, capacity building, environmental cooperation and science and technology, culture and education.
ASEAN is the result of the wisdom and vision of its member countries. Turkey appreciates ASEAN’s balanced, rational and political stance on regional issues. Inclusive, non-competitive values, such as the emphasis on shared prosperity and cooperation for all. These values are important to achieve a better future for all.
Our new Asia initiative defines our new strategic vision for the continent. ASEAN is a key partner for us in implementing this vision. We are encouraged to see our relationships grow steadily since we became a sectoral partner.
There are opportunities to increase our cooperation and the opportunities are endless. There is a mutual political preference. The future of our relationships is bright. Turkey is ready to accept its Asian roots.
We will work together to create this future.
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The author is the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey.
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