Spotlight: Officials, experts say Sino-Turkish partnership to improve in post-pandemic era
The Sino-Turkish partnership is expected to further develop on a win-win, mutual trust basis in the post COVID-19 era, bilateral officials and experts have said.
During an online forum jointly organized by Turkish media group Turkuaz and China Today magazine on Wednesday, officials and experts exchanged views on the common future of China and Turkey in the post-pandemic period, particularly stressing the need for an "in-depth and sustainable improvement of Sino-Turkish ties" and a move towards "strengthening bilateral economic and trade cooperation."
Turkish Energy Deputy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar emphasized the importance of Chinese investments in the vital energy sector.
"When we look at Chinese investments in Turkey between 2005 and 2019, we see that China has a share of 60 percent in all energy investments, totaling 10 billion (U.S.) dollars," he said, noting that these figures highlight the importance of the bilateral energy partnership to both countries.
"I believe that adding nuclear energy to our existing cooperation would be to the benefit of our two nations," he said.
"We believe that cooperation in the nuclear field would significantly contribute to a robust and sustainable partnership between our countries," Bayraktar added.
Wang Wen, head of the Financial Research Institute of China's Renmin University, said that China and Turkey have a lot to offer each other following the pandemic, as "they have similarities since they have both set up detailed visions for the future."
The two countries have supported each other in the anti-virus fight. Chinese medical experts have shared their experiences in treating patients, protecting medical workers, and controlling the spread of the virus with their Turkish counterparts in several video conferences.
China has become a world economic powerhouse and an important trading partner of Turkey, said Murat Kolbasi, chairman of the Asia-Pacific Business Council of Turkey's Foreign Economic Relations Board.
He stressed that the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is an important cooperation medium for both countries to promote regional trade and interaction.
The trade volume between Turkey and China stood at 23.6 billion dollars in 2018 and 21 billion dollars in 2019, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute.
Last month, Turkish producers welcomed China's decision to greenlight imports of Turkish milk and dairy products as they would be vital income for producers severely affected by the pandemic.
Chinese Ambassador to Turkey Deng Li said that China and Turkey are both members of the G20 group and "natural partners" within the BRI.
Pursuing self-sufficiency in energy and technology and diversifying their economic partnerships to the best of their abilities are two priorities for countries in the post-pandemic era, said Altay Atli, an Asia-Pacific expert and academic at Istanbul's Bogazici University.
"China and Turkey will gain from a sustainable and mutually beneficial economic relationship," he said, noting that cooperation on technology, telecommunications and energy should be prioritized.
