The status quo established by World Wars I and II no longer serves the world and a new era is needed, and Turkey aims to be among the leaders of this era, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.
Turkey can achieve positive results in the world by benefiting from all developments on a global scale, Erdogan said at the opening ceremony of the 10th Congress of the World Turkish Business Council (DTIK), which was held Friday and Saturday in Istanbul.
Regarding the Turkish diaspora, he said that the number of Turkish nationals living, working and studying in other countries reached 8 million.
To this figure should also be added Turkish states and members and observers of the Organization of Turkic States, the Caucasus, the Balkans and the Islamic World, he said.
He said Turkey was working to improve economic, social and political ties through institutions such as DTIK.
“Thus, together we will open a new era both for our homeland and for our brothers and sisters in the diaspora,” he noted.
He also said Turkey had not sufficiently harnessed the power of its diaspora, especially in Western countries, adding that weaker diasporas had more power politically.
– Turkey continues to develop
Omer Bolat, Turkey’s Minister of Commerce, said that despite this year’s devastating earthquakes, Turkey was maintaining sustainability and continuing to develop.
With global trade going through a slowdown, Bolat said Turkey aims to reach $255 billion in goods exports and $110 billion in services exports by the end of this year.
He said Turkey had become a hub for trade, investment and tourism.
Turkey continues to diversify its products and trade destinations by concluding more trade deals, he added.
On Thursday, Turkey signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at facilitating trade and increasing investment with the Organization of Turkic States, he said.
Nail Olpak, Chairman of the Foreign Economic Relations Council of Turkey (DEIK), said that DTIK has two main missions: to economically and politically support Turks living abroad to empower them and Turkey, and benefit from representatives of the diaspora to promote Turkey around the world.
Pointing out that DTIK has six main regional directorates and sub-directorate offices, he said participants from more than 130 countries would elect directors and directors on Saturday in Istanbul.
As part of the ceremony, a cooperation agreement was signed by Kubanychbek Omuraliev, Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States, and Olpak, who is also Chairman of the DTIK, signed a cooperation agreement.
