Turkish ministers, business people gather in Istanbul

By Ugur Aslanhan and Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - Lutfi Elvan, the treasury and finance minister, and Abdulhamit Gul, the justice minister, on Friday gathered with the management board of the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TUSIAD) in Istanbul.

Simone Kaslowski, the chairman of TUSIAD, Bahadir Belkir and Murat Ozyegin, deputy chairmen, and the management board members joined the meeting. Naci Agbal, the head of the country's central bank, and other top officials from two ministries also attended the closed-door gathering.

In a written statement after the meeting, Kaslowski said, "We are very pleased that the solutions in the field of economy and law in our country are handled in a constructive consultation environment."

"We think that reforms in these areas will be very important in terms of trust and investment environment," he added.

Elvan tweeted that the first meeting with the business world was productive, and said meetings continue with business world representatives in the coming days.

The two ministers along with Mustafa Varank, the industry and technology minister, Ruhsar Pekcan, the trade minister, and Bekir Pakdemirli, the agriculture and forestry minister, will also gather with the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) representatives on Saturday.