Turkish foreign minister concludes two-day visit to Spain
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will conclude his visit to Spain today as part of a string of Turkish diplomatic activity with the EU.
Turkey is seeking investment deals and trade negotiations with EU states as the country tries to ameliorate its tensions with the bloc. Ankara has already successfully hashed out a post-Brexit trade deal with the UK worth $25 billion.
With Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s desire to start 2021 with a “clean slate” with the US and EU, expect increased diplomatic efforts in the short-term. Along with the UK, other European partners including France, Germany, Portugal and Spain have expressed interest in some form of economic partnership. EU-wide relations are unlikely to completely cool down from their flare-up last month when sanctions were threatened in response to disputes over Eastern Mediterranean hydrocarbon exploration and human rights violations.
Although tensions may serve as impediments to Turkish rapprochement with the EU, the post-Brexit trade deal with the UK could serve as a model for peripheral countries to build economic linkages with Brussels. More broadly, Turkey will likely continue to bolster its international ties; it is also embarking on voyages with similar economic goals to ASEAN nations.
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