Turkish Ambassador Ahmet Meric was appointed to Ukraine in December. He completed a degree in international relations in Turkey and the United Kingdom and has spent much of his career in the diplomatic field. He previously served as the ambassador of Turkey to Singapore, deputy director general for the Global Control of Arms and Disarmament, and worked at Turkish Embassies in Iran, Japan, Israel, and Finland, in addition to multiple positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey. The ambassador speaks English and French. He is married with two children. Here are excerpts from his April 15 interview with the Kyiv Post.
Turks in Ukraine
“Today there are some 10,000 officially registered Turkish people in Ukraine, but we estimate the number to reach 20,000. More than 2,000 are Turkish students, predominantly majoring in sciences, technology and medicine. After graduation, some of them stay in Ukraine and start businesses, some move to other countries. However, the majority return to Turkey, where they have broad career opportunities, as Ukrainian universities are widely recognized. The student body is very active in Ukraine: most speak fluent Russian or Ukrainian, create associations and dearly love this nation.”
Business community
Indeed, one can observe Turkish businesses in almost every sector of the Ukrainian economy and in every region of the country. Certainly construction takes the lead in this respect, as well as textile, agricultural and chemical sectors.
However, if you look at the profiles of Turkish businesses in Ukraine, they are mostly small and middle-sized enterprises.
Unfortunately, big companies do not show enough interest in the Ukrainian market. Uncertainties, unknowns and an undeveloped legal base are the main reasons.
Turkish investors have their alternatives; they can pick and choose. However, the experiences of existing Turkish companies on the Ukrainian market, which is struggling with numerous impediments and bottlenecks, are not very encouraging.
Ukraine needs to correct these negative aspects and conduct the long list of reforms to prepare encouraging legal grounds, attractive to a foreign investor.
At this point, despite the fact the Ukrainian economy has become market-oriented, the rules remain from those of old days. I cannot say that the current situation is much different for Turkish investors from five or 10 years ago.
Major difficulties experienced by Turkish businesses in Ukraine are bureaucracy and the undeveloped legal base. Some have problems with obtaining or extending visas, some are being deported without any satisfactory reasons. Some businesses cannot receive installments; many do not have value-added tax reimbursed.”
Common economic zone
“In 2008 we hit the threshold of $8 billion in bilateral trade turnover. However, in the crisis of 2009 it halved, but we expect it to reach the pre-crisis level this year. The trade balance is heavily in favor of Ukraine, which is one of Turkey’s primarily resources for raw products, chemicals, iron, and steel. Turkey, in its turn, invested some $1.3 billion into Ukraine, which is quite a significant figure.
We are aiming to establish common economic zone, which will enable goods, capital and human resources circulate freely between our countries.”
Both outside of EU
“It seems to me that the European Union has not made up its mind yet. They don’t know how to proceed and exactly what kind of union they want to have. They definitely need to make up their minds.
Turkey certainly supports Ukraine’s Western integration aspirations and we want to see the negotiations and cooperation with the EU taking place. And we shall continue to support mUkraine’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations to the degree that Ukrainian authorities wish to proceed.”
Understanding of Turkey
Despite religious differences, we share a common history. There was very active interaction between our two nations in the 14th-16th centuries, the traces of which are still easy to observe. We are people from this region of the world and our mentality corresponds.
I cannot name a single difficulty, despite business complexities, Turkish people face in Ukraine. Many create families here; many embrace Ukraine as their second homeland. They also have the opportunity to maintain national traditions and freely express and practice their religious views in Ukraine, a country with great ethnic and religious tolerance.
However, despite the fact that Turkey has been number one travel destination for Ukrainians, the level of understanding of Turkish culture is still low, as tourism is mostly focused on sun and resorts. That’s why every year we organize special events dedicated to Turkish culture.
Special holiday
It is very special for us. April 23, 1921, is the day when our Grand National Assembly was established. It took place during the Turkish War of Independence that followed immediately after World War I, when Turkey was fighting occupational forces. Mustafa Kemal, the leader of the Turkish national movement, proclaimed the need for democratization and expression of the people’s will. And under such unstable circumstances, the Assembly was established. Kemal dedicated this day to the children, meaning the future generations. These were the worst times for our country, during which we still managed to lay the keystones for our future.
Now it is a public holiday, mostly celebrated as Children’s Day. Every year, there is a very flamboyant festival held at the National Assembly with the participation of student groups from all over the world.
This year there will be a performance in Kyiv dedicated to the holiday with the participation of 12 Ukrainian schools.
About Turkey:
At this point Turkey is a full-fledged democracy with a very solid economy. We have survived the latest crisis with relatively few scratches. Turkey lived through many crises, is experienced in the matter and has great resistance to such turbulences.”
Kyiv Post staff writer Nataliya Bugayova can be reached at [email protected]
Read also ‘World in Ukraine: Neighboring Ukraine, Turkey do not fit East, West labels’ by Nataliya Bugayova.
Turkey-Ukraine facts:
Bilateral trade turnover 2009: $4 billion.
Exports from Turkey to Ukraine: $1 billion.
Exports from Ukraine to Turkey: $3 billion.
Major commodities exported from Turkey to Ukraine: fruits and vegetables, mineral fuels and oils, nuclear reactors, boilers, knitted apparel, products of iron and steel, automotive products, electrical appliances.
Major commodities exported from Ukraine to Turkey: iron and steel, mineral fuels and oils, animal and plant oils, fertilizers.
Foreign direct investment in Ukraine: $142.9 million.
Number of Turkish nationals in Ukraine: 10,000 registered; 20,000 estimated.
Number of Turkish companies in Ukraine: about 500.
Republic of Turkey at a glance:
Population: 76.8 million
Ethnic groups: Turkish 70-75 percent, Kurdish 18 percent, other minorities 7-12 percent.
Official language: Turkish
Religion: 99 percent of the population is Muslim, mostly Sunni
Per capita gross domestic product 2009 (purchasing power parity): $11,200
GDP (PPP): $863.3 billion
Population below poverty line: 17.11%
Source: CIA Fact book
