Erdogan calls for visa-free travel between Turkey and Saudi Arabia

Addressing Turkish and Saudi businesspeople at a meeting of Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry yesterday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for the mutual relaxation of visa requirements between Turkey and Saudi Arabia. "Turkey recently scrapped visa requirements with Syria, Jordan and Lebanon," he said. "Work is underway to relax visa requirements with Russia. Why not we remove these requirements with Saudi Arabia as well?" He added that doing so for just businesspeople would be insufficient for boost bilateral ties. Stressing that Turkey and Saudi Arabia share a common history and destiny, Erdogan told how Turkey recently signed a host of agreements with Iraq and Syria towards deepening bilateral ties. "Turkey is a gateway for Saudi businesspeople to Europe and the Central Asia," Erdogan said, pledging that Ankara would do whatever is necessary to help Saudi entrepreneurs doing business in Turkey. Saying that Turkey is widely predicted to be one of the world's fastest growing economies in the post-crisis era, Erdogan called on Saudi businesspeople to invest in Turkey to benefit from the opportunities that Turkey offers. Saying that the Turkish economy has become more stable and resilient thanks to reforms in recent years, and so presents a very attractive investment climate for foreign investors, Erdogan said this also made Turkey an investment magnet for Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia. Dismissing a dip in trade between the two countries due to the world economic crisis as temporary, Erdogan said the Turkish-Saudi trade volume could hit $10 billion within several years, and eventually $20 billion. "We must realize the actual potential of two G-20 countries in bilateral trade," he added.