UPDATE 2 - Top Turkish diplomat urges businesses to invest in Venezuela

UPDATE WITH CAVUSOGLU’S REMARKS AT THE CLOSING SESSION

By Sinan Dogan and Muhammed Emin Canik

CARACAS, Venezuela (AA) – Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Friday called on Turkish businesses to make investments in the South American country of Venezuela.

Speaking at the opening session of the third meeting of the Venezuela-Turkiye Joint Cooperation Commission, Cavusoglu said that he evaluated the trade relations between the two countries with the Venezuelan Vice-President Tareck El Aissami.

He said that they discussed a wide range of relations during the meeting in presence of the ministers of tourism, health, education, and fisheries.

"Our friends are making great efforts to make these meetings and mechanisms successful,” he added.

Stating that they continue to work in line with the opinions received from experts on issues such as transportation, tourism, development, agriculture, migration, and security, the top Turkish diplomat said that they have completed negotiations on agreements in the fields of industry, tourism, fisheries, youth, and sports.

The agreements will be signed in the presence of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro at the closing session, said Cavusoglu.

“The increase in our trade has increased our hopes for the future. We encourage Turkish businesspeople to invest in Venezuela,” he said.

Aissami thanked Cavusoglu for his visit.

“We make productive, prosperous, mutual investments for our peoples,” he said.

“Turkiye struggles to protect and defend world peace. It encourages us to work together in building a more just world,” said the Venezuelan vice-president.

-Turkiye opposes sanctions

In his closing remarks, Cavusoglu said that Turkiye stands beside Venezuela.

“Our trade has increased by approximately 300% in 2021, compared to the previous year. Despite the distance between us, we rank Turkiye first in Venezuela's exports. When we look at the figures in the first three months, we see that we will easily reach the $ 1.5 billion target,” he said.

“I would like to emphasize once again that we strongly oppose sanctions against Venezuela. We will continue to stand by the friendly country Venezuela,” he added.

Turning to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Cavusoglu said: “I would like to once again share the greetings of President of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan to you and the people of Venezuela. We are waiting for you in Turkiye as soon as possible.”

“Your close friendship and strong will to develop cooperation carries us forward in every field. Your mutual visits in 2018 were a turning point in our relations,” he added.

Cavusoglu said that seven agreements and a mutual declaration have been signed during the meeting.

Stating that they want to sign agreements in the fields of health, fisheries, and tourism during Maduro's visit to Turkiye, Cavusoglu stated that Turkiye will do its part with its institutions.

-Maduro hails Turkish government

Speaking at the closing session of the Venezuela-Turkiye Joint Cooperation Commission, President Maduro hailed the Turkish government for facilitating talks between Russia and Ukraine and wished success in the process.

He said that Turkiye has helped Venezuela when it needed the most, referring to the medical aid extended by Turkiye during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have established very strong political and diplomatic relations based on trust in the recent years between Turkiye and Venezuela,” said Maduro adding Turkiye opposed the sanctions against his country.

He also called on Turkish investors to come to Venezuela.

“Venezuela has now started to recover; it is now advancing step by step with its efforts. Let Turkish investors come here and invest because we have a very wide economic portfolio. It's time for the Turks to invest here,” he said.

He said he will visit Turkiye soon.

“I think we maximized this joint commission. We have signed many agreements in various fields. I will go to Turkiye to address all these issues, to accelerate cooperation, and to shake the hand of my dear friend Erdogan,” he added.

"We love Turkiye. We are real friends of Turkiye. Venezuela is Turkiye's best friend. Long live Venezuela-Turkiye relationship, long live friendship, long live peace, long live cooperation,” he said.