Turkey a rising star, says Deputy PM Babacan

JEDDAH (A.A) - January 11, 2012 - Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan said Wednesday that Turkey was a rising star. Speaking at a meeting of the Saudi Arabia-Turkey Trade and Investment Bridge co-organized by the Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists of Turkey (TUSKON) and the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce, Ali Babacan said that Turkey and Saudi Arabia were regional actors and that relations between the two countries must be further developed. Our relations with Saudi Arabia have both an economic and political dimension. We need to carry our relations further. Relations between King Abdullah and Turkish President Abdullah Gul as well as Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan are highly warm. The two countries have a tremendous potential for the stability and prosperity of the region. Our two countries are regional actors. When we compare today with the past, commercial figures between Turkey and Saudi Arabia are getting higher. However, this is not sufficient, Babacan underlined. Speaking at the meeting, the Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said that the trade volume between Islamic countries had to be increased. Another speaker at the meeting, the Chairman of the Jeddah Chamber of Trade, Sheikh Salih Kamal, said that they were proud with Turkey. Turkey's economic and political strength in the world makes the whole Islamic world proud, Kamal said. Turkey, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia are the most important three countries of the Islamic world. They are members of the G20 and this makes the Islamic world proud. Muslims in the 21st century must grow further economically. We want the whole Islamic world to develop, Kamal added. Also speaking at the meeting, TUSKON's Vice-President Ahmet Ciger said that Turkey and Saudi Arabia had a great economic potential. I am confident that today's meeting in Jeddah would contribute to our commercial relations, Ciger also said.