Turkey seeks to improve trade ties with US

Transportation Minister Binali Yildirim said yesterday that the US could use Turkey as a center for air supply and cargo transportation to the Middle East, the South Asia and other regions. Meeting with his US counterpart Ray LaHood on the sidelines of the 28th Annual Conference jointly held by the American-Turkish Council (ATC) and the Turkish-American Business Council (TABC) in Washington with a focus on the review of relations between the two countries under the theme of US-Turkey: Overcoming Challenges in an Era of Change, Yildirim told reporters afterwards that the US was currently carrying out its transportation to the region via Germany which was having difficulties due to heavy traffic. "I told my US counterpart that this transportation process can be carried out through Turkey," he said, adding that opportunities for cooperation in the aviation sector and high-speed train projects were on the agenda of their meeting as well. Yildirim also said that the Turkish State Railways (TCDD) and General Electric would soon start joint production of locomotives in the Central Anatolian province of Eskisehir. Yildirim also said, "In addition to Turkey's strategic partnership with the US in fields of defense and security, we would like to improve ties in transportation, trade, tourism and information technology as well. We believe there is a great potential towards this end."