Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat met with members of the press within the scope of his Brussels contacts.
Pointing out that Türkiye is making intense efforts in the context of Turkey-EU relations, under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, in coordination with ministries and the business world, Bolat said, "Turkey-EU economic relations are as important for the EU as they are for Turkey. Many of our European partners and friends are aware of this. They want to continue their close and strong economic relations with Turkey." made his assessment.
Bolat stated that intensive studies have been carried out on the Industrial Acceleration Law for the last year and pointed out that in this context, there are restrictive regulations regarding future investments and electric vehicles, especially in the automotive industry.
Stating that they are carrying out intense diplomacy traffic to eliminate the restrictive regulations in question, Bolat stated that they clearly conveyed Türkiye's expectations to their interlocutors and that their contacts continue.
Minister Bolat pointed out that there are different trends in the face of trade wars, economic difficulties and geopolitical tensions in the world.
Stating that the EU is not a single and homogeneous structure, Bolat reminded that it hosts many different communities and nations.
Bolat reminded that the Industrial Acceleration Law was presented by the EU Commission and that decisions will be made in the European Parliament (EP) and the EU Council, and emphasized that one should be "calm and cool" on this issue.
Pointing out that when politics and parliament are involved, a different unfavorable decision may be made, Bolat said that there are many EU officials who believe that Türkiye is definitely within the scope of "Made in EU".
"WE ARE PROGRESSING ON THE BASIS OF THE ISSUES (CUSTOMS UNION UPDATE NEGOTIATIONS)"
Minister Bolat stated that he had intensive contacts in Brussels and held official meetings 3 times in the last 3 months and 5 times in the last year.
Pointing out that the number of friends and partners with Türkiye within the EU has increased, Bolat said, "I hope the result will be beneficial." he said.
Reminding that the Customs Union has brought a lot to both the EU and Türkiye, Bolat said, "Turkey-EU trade increased 11 times in 30 years and reached 233 billion dollars. Therefore, this is a win-win relationship." he said.
Regarding the current status of the Customs Union update negotiations, Minister Bolat pointed out that the process has begun.
Reminding that the main issues within the scope of modernization or updating of the Customs Union are e-commerce, public procurement, investments and agricultural products, Bolat said that progress has been made in these areas.
Recalling the law passed by the Turkish Grand National Assembly in July regarding public procurement, Bolat stated that the analysis process to reach a bilateral agreement between Türkiye and the EU has been completed and technical negotiations have started.
Stating that the EU acted in coordination with Turkey in the field of digital trade while preparing its own legislation, Bolat reminded that Türkiye was exempt from the legislation that the EU started to implement on July 1, which includes the collection of 3 euros per package.
Bolat pointed out that due to the attitude of some member countries, the Commission has not yet been authorized by the EU Council to officially start the Customs Union update negotiations, and said, "Since the relevant issues have come to the agenda, the relevant authorities of the EU Commission are negotiating with us. We are progressing on an issue-by-issue basis." he said.
