Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

In his speech, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the agreement signed between TOBB and the US Chamber of Commerce have brought relations to a new level, “The number, scope and frequency of the activities we’ve undertaken together have increased in such a way as to have reached a new level. It has become a tradition to host Turkish officials visiting the US as TOBB and the US Chamber of Commerce. We’ve had opportunity to host the President of the Republic of Turkey and the Prime Minister as well as Deputy Prime Ministers and Ministers.”

Expressing his pleasure in hosting Economy Minister Mustafa Elitaş, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Mr. Elitaş is intimately familiar with the business community. Because he, too, comes from a business background. He is also from Kayseri, as am I. He has been in working closely with our Union since he came to office. He contributes greatly to the development of our country’s economy and foreign trade,” and thanked Minister Elitaş.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that he has visited the US numerous times since becoming TOBB President in 2001 along with TOBB Board Members and experts, and that, delegations and officials from Turkey and the US have been hosted, which have contributed to the development of Turkish-US relations even if modestly.

Reporting that high level bilateral visits have been conducted, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “We haven’t focused on just Ankara and İstanbul. We’ve spread our activities throughout all of Turkey. Likewise, we haven’t been working only in Washington DC or New York in the US; we’ve reached out to Atlanta, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Chicago. We will go to new states and cities this year; we will convey the investment opportunities in Turkey. In the same way, we will be relaying the investment opportunities in the US to the companies in Turkey.”

Emphasizing that the scope of activities have been expanded to cover promising sectors, Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that biotech, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, tourism, communications and venture capital are covered.

Drawing attention to the importance put on Turkey becoming a party for the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership agreement signed between the US and the EU or signing an FTA with the US, Hisarcıklıoğlu went on, “In this regard, we prepared a report last September. We know that there are significant cooperation opportunities in third countries. That is why the US Chamber of Commerce opened a region office in İstanbul. We have joint work underway in the Middle East with an emphasis on the Middle East Trade Center.

We are planning a meeting between TOBB, the US Chamber of Commerce and the Iranian Chamber of Trade, Industry and Mining. We are undertaking all of these efforts with regards to the importance put on Turkish-American relations. Our relations are very robust and important.”

Economy Minister Mustafa Elitaş spoke with American businessmen in regards to the developments in Turkey and answered the questions of the attendees while listening to their suggestions.

Elitaş emphasized the importance of inclusion into the TTIP for resolving many of the issues faced today.

US Chamber of Commerce Senior Vice President Myron Brilliant provided information regarding the US-Turkey Business Council under the US Chamber of Commerce as well as their cooperation with TOBB.

Speaking in regards to the actions they will take in the healthcare sector and communications systems in the future, Brilliant stated that TOBB and the US Chamber of Commerce represent a total of 4.5 million companies and emphasized the importance of their cooperation.

Attending the meeting were representatives of such prominent companies as Abbott, Alpha Technologies, Amgen, Boeing, Coca Cola, DHL, UPS, Dow, Eli Lilly, General Electric, Honeywell, IBM, Intel, Mastercard, Metlife, Motorola, Nike, PayPal, Pfizer, Sierra Nevada Corporation.