MoUDEIKAiG2014

The Australian Industry Group (AiG) and Turkey's Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 21 February in Sydney to establish a bilateral business council. The signing was attended by Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Babacan.

The MoU commits both organisations to establish a bilateral Business Council which will: help promote trade between the two countries; contribute to industrial and technological collaboration between their enterprises and economic institutions; and coordinate joint efforts to collect, combine, analyse, evaluate and diffuse information in relation to trade, industrial and technological cooperation and investments to the mutual benefit of the two nations. The MoU was signed by AiG NSW Director Mark Goodsell and DEIK/TOBB President Rifat Hisarciklioglu.

In a media release AiG Chief Executive Innes Willox highlighted that the new bilateral business council would go some way to boosting trade between the two countries. He noted that Turkey and Australia already had many commercial ties including across defence, mining, construction and food sectors and that the MoU was a natural next step in strengthening this relationship.

In his remarks at the signing ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Babacan, noted the special relationship between Australia and Turkey because of Gallipoli, but said there was significant scope to enhance trade and investment between the two countries with current bilateral trade at $1.4 billion. He said 2015 had been designated as a Year of Australia in Turkey and Year of Turkey in Australia and that Turkey was also organising bilateral business and trade events to take place in 2015.