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Carney arrives in Turkey for meetings with Turkish president, business leaders
The trip aims to launch a strategic partnership and advance free-trade talks as bilateral trade has risen nearly 50% in five years, officials said.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Mark Carney arrived in Ankara for a three-day trip aimed at deepening political and economic ties with Turkey, marking the first bilateral visit by a Canadian prime minister to the NATO ally.
Canada and Turkey conduct about $4 billion in trade annually, with both economies seeking alternatives to the increasingly protectionist United States market as Carney pursues trade diversification.
Accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson, Carney laid a wreath at the mausoleum of Turkish founding father Mustafa Kemal Ataturk shortly after arriving Thursday.
The Prime Minister is set to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss bilateral relations and a potential free-trade pact, which the two nations formally launched talks to pursue earlier this year.
Kerim Uras, a senior fellow at Carleton University's Centre in Modern Turkish Studies, characterized the visit as "the Carney doctrine meets Turkish pragmatism," reflecting how middle powers seek alternatives to U.S. economic pressure.
Prime Minister Mark Carney arrived in Turkey on Thursday to begin a three-day visit to strengthen political and economic ties with this NATO-allied country.