Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Nazim Ekren says the size of trade exchange between Yemen and Turkey reached $ 194 million during the first seven months of 2008, expecting it would rise to "$ 400 million by the year end", according to Saba. Ekren, who heads Turkish high ranking delegation of ministers and businessmen in the fourth rounds' meetings of the Yemeni-Turkish Joint Ministerial Committee started its activity here on Sunday, asserted existence of great horizons of cooperation between the two countries, indicating importance of developing trade exchange rates between them. He noted that the committee could set aims for increasing size of trade exchange between Yemen and Turkey to $ 1 billion during 2010 due to potentials exiting in the two countries, asserting his country's desire to expand relations with Yemen. Earlier of the day, Minister of Trade and Industry Yahya al-Mutawakel and Turkish Deputy Prime Minster Nazim Ekren co-chaired the committee 4th round's meetings . Al-Mutawakel who welcomed Ekren and the accompanying delegation indicated that these meetings including economic officials and businessmen from the two countries assert keenness of the two countries for promoting relations and reaching to admirable partnership. "The visit, with its economic value, affirms the two countries heeding for supporting and encouraging investments," says al-Mutawakel, calling on Turkish investors and businessmen to invest in Yemen. He said that cooperation between Yemen and Turkey in the current period that focus on activating trade and investment cooperation via private sectors of the two countries seeks to promote economic and trade relations between the two countries to be in parallel level of strong political relations. He clarified that Turkey has ranked 8 among exporting countries to Yemen in 2005, indicating there are 27 companies in the country operating with Turkish partners and that Turkish agencies registered in Yemen have reached 151. Then talk session held between the two parts reviewed level of carrying out treaties and protocols signed between the two countries during the past period. These treaties and protocols have reached till this month 24 documents. 11 treaties, memos of understanding and cooperation protocols in different fields between the two brotherly countries are expected to be signed as results of the current round's meetings. A workshop between Yemeni and Turkish businessmen is to be held tomorrow for discussing work papers from ministries of oil, public works and electricity, Aden Free Zone, General Investment Authority and from Industrial Zones Authority.
