Talabani urges Turkish businessmen to visit, invest in Iraq

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani last week invited the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodities Exchanges (TOBB) to visit his country, saying that he wants more Turkish investments there. Meeting with TOBB head Rifat Hisarciklioglu on the sidelines of an Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) summit in Istanbul, Talabani said that 600 Turkish companies have done business worth $8 billion in Iraq, adding that the airports in Erbil and Sulaimaniya, plus Sulaimaniya University, were built by Turkish firms. "Talabani wants more investment and trade from Turkey," Hisarciklioglu told the Anatolia news agency. "He also said bilateral trade should be boosted to $20 billion in short order." Talabani urged TOBB members to visit Erbil, Sulaimaniya, Mosul, Kirkuk, Baghdad, Najaf and Basra and meet with officials of both the local and national government and businesspeople.