Turkey determined to realize its 2023 targets: Erdogan

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday said the annual capacity of New Istanbul Airport can be raised to 200 million passengers if needed.

Istanbul Airport --inaugurated in the 95th anniversary of the republic on Oct. 29-- will serve 150 million passengers by 2023, Erdogan told at the closing ceremony of 17th Independent Industrialists and Businessmen Association (MUSIAD) Expo in Istanbul.

At full capacity -- with the completion of all four phases with six runways -- Istanbul Airport is set to become a global aviation hub by hosting more than 100 airlines and flights to over 300 destinations around the world.

The four-day expo, of which Anadolu Agency is the global communications partner, was being attended by businesspeople, academics, journalists, non-governmental organizations, and politicians.

Erdogan said Turkey will break its record of tourists by surpassing 40 million this year.

In the first nine months of this year, Turkey hosted 37 million visitors from abroad, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Erdogan affirmed that Turkey is determined to realize its 2023 targets despite falling behind its plans due to “attacks” in the last 5 years.

"Our goal, as a country, is to increase its exports to $500 billion, GDP to $2 trillion and to have a say in every field from design to production in order to carry ourselves and our friends a step forward," Erdogan said.