Turkish PM calls for stronger economic relation with Japan

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday called for more investments from Japan to his country and expansion of bilateral trade in a lecture conducted in Tokyo. Erdogan, who is on a visit to Japan from Monday to Wednesday, stressed that his visit centers on joint investment opportunities, meanwhile hoping to expand annual bilateral trade volume to 10 billion U.S. dollars from the present 4 billion dollars by 2023. "The scale of Japan-Turkish trade is limited in size, but with solidarity, cooperation and warm friendship, this issue can be solved." Erdogan said, adding that a bilateral free trade agreement is crucial to further trade expansion. The Turkish prime minister, who has been in power since 2003, explained the country's current account deficit is a result of the importation of fossil fuels and will be neutralized by the development of renewable energy sources. After the lecture, Erdogan met with members of Japan's largest business lobby, the Japan Business Foundation. "An Economic Partnership Agreement is essential in order to take Japan-Turkey economic relations to the next level," Chairman Hiromasa Yonekura said at a lunch meeting. Erdogan will also visit Singapore and Malaysia after his stay in Japan.