Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, accompanied by a delegation of ministers, is on an official visit to Ankara at the invitation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
"The official visit is a key milestone in the establishment of the strategic partnership between Romania and Turkey in December 2011, with the launch of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, the equivalent of joint government meetings," the government press service said, quoted by Agence France-Presse.
The council will be coordinated by the prime minister of Romania and the president of Turkey. It will play a catalytic role in strengthening cooperation in strategic areas of common interest, in developing strategic partnership at all levels, and in expanding cooperation within the framework of regional cooperation.
The Political Declaration also includes the establishment of a bilateral dialogue mechanism, namely a "Political Dialogue Group" at the level of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, under the coordination of the Foreign Ministers.
"The launch of the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council underlines the commitment of Romania and Turkey to strengthen bilateral relations both politically and economically, which are the main pillar of our cooperation. Turkey is Romania's main non-EU trading partner and the first non-EU destination for Romanian exports. Through future projects in the energy, transport, agriculture, food and defence industries, we aim to increase trade to USD 15 billion," Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said ahead of the visit.
In 2023, bilateral trade stood at over $10 billion. Turkish investment in Romania ranks 14th in terms of investors' country of residence, with 18,755 companies operating with Turkish capital in March 2024.
During the visit, the ministers accompanying the prime minister will hold meetings with their Turkish counterparts to develop joint projects.
A number of agreements and memoranda of understanding will also be signed on sectoral cooperation in areas such as social security, SMEs, tourism, functional aspects of the work of the two countries' diplomatic missions and urban planning.
On the sidelines of the official visit, the Romanian Prime Minister will lay a wreath at the mausoleum dedicated to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk within the Anitkabir complex in Ankara. / BGNES
