Türkiye and Algeria pledged to deepen economic cooperation on May 7, as officials from both countries met in Ankara for a business forum held alongside Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune’s visit.
A day after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan welcomed Tebboune at Esenboğa Airport, government officials and business leaders gathered to discuss cooperation in sectors including energy, construction, agriculture, textiles and food.
During the forum, Türkiye's Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said bilateral trade between the two countries currently stands at $5.6 billion, adding that efforts are continuing to meet the previously announced target of $10 billion.
"In this sense, we, as political leaders, our colleagues in the bureaucracy and managers in the financial system, have a strong will to resolve any problems that may arise in the foreign trade and investments of both countries, and we will reflect this on the ground," he said.
"With the understanding of growing, strengthening and winning together, we prioritize brotherly countries and strive to strengthen our level of economic integration with them."
Following Bolat’s remarks, Turkish and Algerian companies signed a series of cooperation and investment agreements.
The forum was attended by Algeria’s Foreign Trade and Export Promotion Minister Kamel Rezig, Investment Development Agency head Omar Rekkache, Algerian Economic Renewal Council vice leader Reda Hechelaf and Türkiye's Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) chief Nail Olpak, along with business representatives from both countries.
Rezig said Algeria considers Türkiye a reliable economic partner and expressed hope for broader strategic cooperation.
"The more we can expand the areas of cooperation, the better. I primarily emphasize industry, agriculture, mining and infrastructure, these are priorities for us,” he said. "Thanks to Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Mr. Erdoğan, we will achieve these."
For his part, Rekkache said Algeria is undergoing a major economic transformation focused on building a more balanced and sustainable economy while diversifying income sources.
A promotional video prepared by the Algerian Economic Renewal Council was also presented during the forum.
Later in the day, Türkiye and Algeria were scheduled to hold the first meeting of their high-level strategic cooperation council.
Türkiye’s Communications Director Burhanettin Duran said the meeting would review ties with what he described as “friendly and brotherly” Algeria and discuss steps to further strengthen bilateral cooperation.
Duran said the talks were also expected to include discussions on regional and international developments, while several agreements aimed at strengthening the legal framework of bilateral relations were expected to be signed during the visit.
