Turkey and Ukraine will sign a free trade agreement on Thursday when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visits Kyiv amid tensions between Ukraine and Russia, Turkish Trade Minister Mehmet Muş told a news conference on Wednesday.
"Tomorrow, hopefully, we will sign a New Generation Free Trade Agreement with Ukraine as the fruit of more than a decade of negotiations," Muş stressed in his comments to reporters in the capital Ankara.
Pointing to the strong ties between Turkey and Ukraine, including trade, Muş said the bilateral trade volume jumped 59% to $7.4 billion in 2021.
"Especially the diversification of the products subject to our bilateral trade is pleasing," Muş added.
The deal is an important step to reach the $10 billion bilateral trade volume target set by the two countries' presidents, he underlined.
Turkey is a maritime neighbour of both Ukraine and Russia, in the Black Sea, and has good ties with both. It has called on them to avoid any military conflict and warned Russia that an invasion of Ukraine would be unwise.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will visit Kyiv on Feb. 3, when Kyiv will be hosting the 10th High-Level Strategic Council between Turkey and Ukraine.
The leaders of the two states are expected to attend the event, which will also mark the 30th anniversary of their countries' relations.
Dating back to 1991, when Ukraine declared its independence, Turkey was the first to recognize its new status.
