GCC-Turkey meet will bolster ties

Prince Saud Al-Faisal, foreign minister, will co-chair the ministerial meeting between the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Turkey in Istanbul on Saturday. "The meeting comes within the framework of the strategic dialogue between the GCC and the Republic of Turkey on ministerial level," said Ahmed Kabi, a spokesman of the GCC General Secretariat, in Riyadh on Wednesday. "The Turkish side will be headed by Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkish foreign minister," adding the dialogue between the GCC and Turkey will help to exchange views and coordinate positions on regional issues of common interest. The meeting is important due to the challenges faced by countries in the Middle East and the uprisings that have posed security problems in the Arab world. He pointed out such contact between the GCC states and Turkey began in September 2008 following the signing of an agreement for strategic dialogue between the two sides. "The dialogue has added significance keeping in view the threat of Iran and the current scenario in which Turkey offers a counterbalance to the growing clout of Tehran," said a GCC report. The report said the perception of an Iranian threat to Gulf states has not diminished but grown over the last few years. The GCC placed Iran at the top of its agenda, above the UAE's territorial dispute over three tiny islands in the Gulf (which are occupied by Iran), and meddling in Palestinian, Lebanese and Iraqi affairs. It urged member states to take action to curb Iranian engagement in the Middle East. Kabi said senior GCC officials including ministers and deputy ministers from the six countries would attend the dialogue. "Turkey's growing relations with the GCC are in the best interest of GCC as a bloc and also for Turkey as a nation close to Europe," said the report, adding Turkey has uniquely positioned itself to offer a viable partnership with the Gulf. Turkey has considerable credit with the Iranian leadership also, said the report, adding that the GCC has been a vital supplier of oil to Turkey, which is dependent on imported energy sources. Historically, oil has made up roughly 80 percent of Saudi exports to Turkey. Geographic distance has made trade difficult between the two regions, but talks are now under way for a gas pipeline between Qatar and Turkey. Turkey has also been a major supplier of iron and steel, vital for the GCC's strong construction industry, in addition to exporting vehicles, machinery, and electrical engineering products. "Another area for economic cooperation is agriculture," said the report, adding food security has been a primary concern for GCC countries due to the lack of agriculture, which necessitates imports of most food products. Turkey leads the region in its production of food products, and agriculture accounts for roughly 9.5 percent of its GDP. Roughly 35.5 percent of Turkey is arable land. On the business front, the GCC will send a huge delegation to the GCC-Turkey Business Forum, scheduled for Feb. 26 in Turkey. The forum will discuss security, political, military, and economic relations between the Gulf countries and Turkey. Hundreds of government delegates, experts, businessmen, businesswomen and industrialists from the six-nation regional bloc and Turkey will take part in the conference, which will be addressed by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The report said that the strong impetus of trade between Turkey and the Gulf was set to increase from the current $4.4 billion (January-October 2011) to $10 billion by 2015. "For Saudi-Turkish trade, the Turkish authorities see $10 billion within reach in two years while $20 billion has been presented as a realistic medium-term target," the report said. "Trade between Turkey and the UAE soared to $8.7 billion in 2008 before plummeting to $3.6 billion in 2009 and recovering to $4 billion in 2010," it noted.