ANKARA, July 26 (NNN-Bernama) — Turkey hopes more Malaysian companies will invest in the country, especially in the defence industry.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the defence industry should be the top topic of discussion among the Malaysian and Turkish governments as well as private sectors.
Furthermore, trade cooperation should be improved, he said, noting that the two countries had maintained good bilateral relations since 1964.
“I believe trade volumes should be better. We can focus on specific areas. In terms of business cooperation, every level should be improved,” he said during a joint media conference with Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad at the Presidential Complex here Thursday.
Erdogan said he and Dr Mahathir had made a significant decision to cooperate further in the future, especially in the economic sector.
Earlier, Dr Mahathir visited Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), which is Turkey’s centre of technology in design, development, modernisation, manufacturing, integration and life cycle support of integrated aerospace systems, from fixed and rotary wing air platforms to unmanned aerial vehicles and satellites.
Turkey is an important economic partner for Malaysia. In 2018, total trade between the two countries stood at RM9.79 billion.
Exports from Malaysia to Turkey totalled RM7.97 billion while imports from Turkey to Malaysia amounted to RM1.82 billion.
Turkey is Malaysia’s third largest trading partner from West Asia while for Turkey, Malaysia is the largest partner among ASEAN countries.
NNN–BERNAMA