Ukranian PM pledges easier investment for Turks

Ukraine will cut taxes on imports from Turkey, and Turks will be able to take advantage of tax exemptions for tourism investments, Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov announced at a meeting with Turkish businessmen in Istanbul on Monday. "We're inviting Turkish investors to invest in Ukraine," Azarov said at the meeting organized by Turkey's Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK). Various tax cuts and exemptions will be introduced for Turkish investors to boost Ukraine's economic growth, he said. As the state is planning to privatize nearly 80 percent of state-run firms, Azarov added, "Nearly $20 billion is being allocated to a program to modernize the country for various projects." According to Azarov, the 20 percent tax applied to Turkish products will fall to 17 percent by 2014.