Syria, Turkey trade exchange sees strong increase

The Syrian ambassador to Turkey Muhammad Saeed al-Bunni has stressed that President Bashar al-Assad's directives, the new legislation and measures which were taken in Syria aimed at encouraging investment and attracting Arab and foreign investors alike.

In a speech he delivered at the seminar organized on Friday by the economic paper Dunia to discuss the trade issue between Turkey and its neighbors said that the volume of trade exchange between Turkey and Syria increased from USD 750 million in 2000 to USD one billion in 2001 and this figure is expected to reach USD 1.5 billion in 2002. The ambassador added that still this figure is bellow the expectations and the available potentials between the two countries.

Al-Bunni added that the only option before the country of the region is regional cooperation through drawing a fixed and durable strategy to withstand the negative consequences of globalization which only believes in making profits regardless to social and cultural aspects.

For his part, the chairman of the chamber of industry of Ghazi Intab province and member of the board of the federation of the Turkish chambers of commerce and industry Najat Kotchar said that Turkish- Syrian relations have witnessed a great increase and progress under the leadership of President Bashar al-Assad. He commended the facilities provides and privileges given to the Turkish businessmen in Syria.