Turkey to strengthen trade ties with Tunisia: Erdogan

By Bahattin Gonultas

TUNIS, Tunisia (AA) - Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday vowed to improve trade ties with Tunisia during his official visit to the North African nation.

"Boosting a balanced trade volume will continue to be one of the priorities for our bilateral economic agenda,” Erdogan said.

Erdogan’s remarks came at a joint news conference in the capital Tunis following a closed-door meeting with his Tunisian counterpart Beji Caid Essebsi.

During the meeting four agreements over cooperation in the fields of military, finance and environment were signed.

The two leaders spoke on regional issues ranging from the situation and Libya to terrorism, Erdogan said.

Erdogan thanked the government and people of Tunisia for their support to Turkey following the defeated coup attempt last year.

He said he will encourage Turkish businesspeople to invest in Tunisia.

Essebsi said that Erdogan's visit will play an important role in deepening ties between the two countries.

He said he had been invited for an official visit to Turkey.

Erdogan accompanied by a delegation of government officials arrived in Tunisia early Wednesday for a one-day visit.

Tunisia is the last stop on a three-nation African tour by Erdogan, preceded by visits to Sudan and Chad.

Later on Wednesday, Erdogan will hold a one-on-one meeting with Tunisian Prime Minister Youssef Chahed. He is also expected to meet businesspeople from Tunisia and Turkey at a business forum.