Netherlands hosts Turkish business body Musiad's European assembly

By Yunus Turk

ISTANBUL (AA) - Türkiye’s Independent Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (Musiad) held its Netherlands General Assembly and Europe General Administrative Board meeting on Wednesday in the capital Amsterdam.

The president of the association, Mahmut Asmali, and businesspeople from Türkiye held joint meetings, said a statement by the association.

Ali Koklu was reelected as of chairman of Musiad Netherlands at the general assembly.

Asmali met Musiad members in the region and traveled to the Turkish Embassy in The Hague as part of his visit.

Asmali and the accompanying delegation met Türkiye's Ambassador to the Netherlands, Selcuk Unal, and discussed the association's projects, initiatives targeting earthquake-prone regions, and trade activities in the European region.

After the meeting at the embassy, the delegation met Dutch business representatives in Amsterdam and evaluated regional investment opportunities and cooperation areas.

While the economic developments on the agenda were evaluated at the closing dinner held within the scope of the general assembly, the Musiad Netherlands Global Business Networking Reception held after the closing program attracted great attention.

Ambassador Unal, representatives of foreign missions and the Turkish-Dutch business world and Musiad members evaluated the commercial relations of the two countries at the event.

Musiad Europe's general administrative board, hosted by Musiad Netherlands under the coordination of Musiad's Overseas Organization Commission, was concluded with the Musiad Europe Presidents Meeting, the Meeting of European Sector Board Chairpersons and the Meeting of European Diplomatic Relations Presidents and Organization Presidents.

Asmali said it is possible to further strengthen the commercial links between Türkiye and the Netherlands and to demonstrate an even stronger cooperation with the union.

Drawing attention to Türkiye's logistics position, Asmali said: "Our country, which is the center of global trade, is a hub that offers opportunities to access regional markets.”

"Türkiye strengthens this advantage with the logistics and infrastructure projects implemented in the last 20 years."

Türkiye's commercial relations with the Netherlands, which is one of the important trade points in Europe, have gained momentum in recent years, he said.

In 2022, Türkiye's exports to the Netherlands increased by 18.6% compared to the previous year and reached $8 billion, while Türkiye's imports from the Netherlands amounted to $4.5 billion in the same period, he said.

"In this period, there was a foreign trade surplus of $3.5 billion in favor of our country from our trade with the Netherlands," he added.

Asmali said Türkiye's bilateral trade volume with the Netherlands was $12.5 billion, which is a historical high level.

"In this context, the contribution of our business representatives to this record is obvious," he said.

The influence of Turkish businesspeople in the commercial relations of the European region is increasing, he noted.

"Our country's logistics location, advanced infrastructure and opportunities will make Türkiye the center of global trade in the future.

"As Musiad, we continue to work with all our strength to contribute to the future goals of our country with our domestic and foreign organizations," he added.