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<\/p>\nAnkara and Brussels praised the momentum in their economic relations on Wednesday after a visit by a high-level delegation this week that saw series of meetings and agreements.<\/p>\n
The delegation was accompanying Belgium’s Queen Mathilde as part of a high-level economic mission aimed at strengthening trade and investment ties between T\u00fcrkiye and Belgium.<\/p>\n
Queen Mathilde was received by President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan and met with top Turkish authorities, while also attending a series of meetings and events.<\/p>\n
The delegation included 400 representatives of the Belgian federal and regional authorities, companies, federations, chambers of commerce and academic institutions.<\/p>\n
Both sides noted that T\u00fcrkiye-Belgium economic relations continue to benefit from the broader framework of T\u00fcrkiye-EU relations, including the 1963 Ankara Agreement and the T\u00fcrkiye-EU Customs Union.<\/p>\n
“In this vein, they recognized the importance of the T\u00fcrkiye-EU relationship and expressed support for constructive engagement, including discussions on the modernization of the Customs Union and continued facilitation of business and people-to-people mobility, in accordance with EU frameworks and benchmarks,” a joint statement said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
In addition to strengthening economic cooperation, they said the mission constituted an important step in building more structured and closer political relations.<\/p>\n
Belgium last organized an economic mission to T\u00fcrkiye in 2012, when the visit was led by King Philippe, then crown prince.<\/p>\n
Talks and meetings during the five-day visit focused on strategic sectors such as energy, aerospace and defense industry, logistics and transportation, digital transformation and industry 4.0, and life sciences and pharma.<\/p>\n
“As long-standing partners and NATO Allies, Turkish and Belgian sides noted with pleasure the momentum in their relations, facilitated by joint efforts and a shared interest in international peace and stability in view of regional and global developments,” the statement read.<\/p>\n
Both sides said they acknowledged the deep-rooted relations and reaffirmed the contributions of the Belgian-Turkish community to political, economic, cultural and social ties.<\/p>\n
The visit saw the signing of multiple bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding, providing updated frameworks for cooperation and facilitating closer engagement in areas of mobility, defense, social protection and safety of agri-food products.<\/p>\n
Officials said the two countries are aiming to increase the bilateral trade volume to $15 billion (TL 681.27 billion) in the near term.<\/p>\n
Their trade reached $9.2 billion in 2025, including $5 billion in Turkish exports and $4.2 billion in imports.<\/p>\n
They also expressed a major potential and a need for investments to increase.<\/p>\n
Belgian investments in T\u00fcrkiye totaled $9.3 billion between 2002 and January 2026, while Turkish investments in Belgium amounted to $490 million.<\/p>\n
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