Expanded Türkiye-UK free trade deal to open new doors to Turkish agricultural exports

By Seda Tolmac

ANKARA (AA) – An expansion of the current free trade agreement between Türkiye and the UK will widen the reach of Turkish agricultural products in the UK market, Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat told Anadolu.

The Türkiye-UK free trade pact came into force in 2021 to protect trade flows and supply chains in the aftermath of Brexit. Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy met in London to discuss updating the deal and other matters.

Efforts began in 2022 to expand the deal to include investments and additional agricultural concessions to form a stronger legal ground for businesspeople from the two countries.

Bolat said the existing pact contributed significantly to commercial activities between Türkiye and the UK continuing without interruption, adding that it allows businesspeople of the two countries to protect trade conditions and reduce uncertainty.

“With the implementation of the pact in 2021, a nearly 15% year-on-year increase was seen in trade between Türkiye and the UK, and this level of trade volume was maintained,” he said.

“For Turkish exporters, the free trade pact provides an important assurance to maintain their market reach, and the continuation of bilateral trade via the pact helped businesspeople in Türkiye keep their investments in the UK grounded on a more secure basis, prepared against possible risks,” he added.

Bolat said the expanded deal will help Turkish firms find safer environments while investing in the UK and create a more robust legal framework for mutual investments.

He said long-term cooperation between Türkiye and the UK will be encouraged in the expanded agreement’s investment chapter, and the inclusion of the services sector where Türkiye is competitive will be significant to boost the cooperation potential, especially in health tourism, finance, and engineering, and the development of new business models will provide mutual benefit to both countries.

“The inclusion of Turkish firms in these competitive sectors will make it so that they will have a more effective presence in the UK market,” he said.

“The expansion of the pact will carry economic and trade relations between Türkiye and the UK to a more advanced level based on sustainable and mutual gains in the long term,” he added.

*Writing by Emir Yildirim in Istanbul