Turkey, Ukraine sign trade and drone agreements

The governments of Ukraine and Turkey signed a Free
Trade Agreement on Feb. 3. The signing is part of a state visit by Turkish
president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The agreement includes the formation of a joint
committee to ensure the implementation of the treaty over a transition period,
which should see trade grow from USD 7.5 bln to USD 10 bln, Erdogan stated,
according to President Zelensky’s website. Zelensky noted that the progress
already made is considerable, and that trade between the two countries had
risen by over 50% in 2021. With the FTA, over 10,000 Ukrainian goods have 0%
duty, and a further 1,300 goods have a duty of 5% or less.

Turkey and Ukraine also signed an agreement to launch
the production of Bayraktar drones in Ukraine. Bloomberg reported on Feb. 3
that the communications director for Erdogan, Fahrettin Altun explained that,
“Military cooperation between Ankara and Kyiv isn’t intended to target Russia
and won’t be disrupted in order to please it.” Site selection for the new plant
has already taken place.

James Hydzik: As we mentioned on Feb. 3, Erdogan’s
visit is a highlight of days of intense effort on the part of Ukraine’s allies
to show support by visiting Kyiv. Other economic packages and agreements have
been worked out, notably with Poland, but Erdogan’s visit is particularly
important, not least because of the move to actually build UAVs in Ukraine. The
Turkish side, by proclaiming its willingness to engage in negotiation while
helping the Ukrainian armed forces, is also likely to engage in acts such as
preventing the Russian landing ships currently anchored at the Syrian port of
Tartus from entering the Black Sea in the name of peace or de-escalation.