State Secretary Bianca Matković headed Croatian delegation at TUSKON ministerial summit in Istanbul

The ministerial summit was held as part of this week’s economic gathering themed “Turkey – World Trade Bridge 2009”, organized by TUSKON in coordination with the Turkish Prime Minister’s Office - Undersecretariat for Foreign Trade and the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The summit gathered ministers of economy and trade, deputy prime ministers and other high official from 40 odd countries, while its main topic read “The Future of Global Trade: Opportunities and New Possibilities for Cooperation”.

In her speech to the present parties, State Secretary Matković pointed out the importance of this summit and the economic gathering in Istanbul, especially now, in a time of global economic crisis and recession, when countries are expected to work together in finding a solution for the market’s speedy recovery. She reminded that the Croatian Government has passed a package of anti-recession measures, including the stimulation of foreign investment by decreasing administrative obstacles for investments above €10 million. Apart from that, with the aim of giving further impetus to the tourist sector, Croatia has liberalized its visa regime for a number of countries.

State Secretary Matković also emphasized one of the Croatian economic diplomacy’s main tasks – to open through its diplomatic missions abroad the door for exporting Croatian products and to undertake activities to protect Croatia’s export. She also stressed the necessity of continually informing potential foreign investors about the possibilities of investing in Croatia.

Expressing satisfaction with the presence of Croatian businessmen at the gathering, State Secretary Matković said the Croatian side is interested in cooperating on the Turkish market, especially in tourism, transport and energy. Pointing out the advantages of Croatia’s geographical position, she said that, thanks to the excellently-developed and modern road infrastructure and the port of Rijeka, Croatia can serve as a transport bride towards other European countries.

On the summit’s margins, State Secretary Matković met with Turkish Foreign Trade Minister Zafer Çağlayan, with whom she exchanged in short the opinions about the possible economic cooperation between the two countries.

Participating in the “Turkey – World Trade Bridge 2009” economic gathering are some 2,000 businessmen from 150 countries, as well as the representatives of nearly 3,000 Turkish companies. Also attending the gathering were the representatives of several Croatian companies, who had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the possibilities of cooperation with other businessmen there.