Turkish-Russian trade in local currencies ‘necessary’

By Emre Gurkan Abay

MOSCOW

The use of local currencies in trade between Turkey and Russia is "necessary", Russian deputy minister of industry and trade said.

"By using our national currencies, we can protect our organizations and become independent of the decisions of other countries," Alexey Gruzdev said.

Gruzdev underlined that Russian and Turkish organizations intensified their efforts to increase trade by using national currencies.

"We should establish a mechanism to make the use of ruble and lira more popular in our trade," Gruzdev said.

He also noted if countries increase the bilateral exchange of national currencies between the banks, the companies will also realize the advantage of this method and raise its usage in trade.

Noting that Turkish companies are successfully represented in Russia, especially in the food, textile and construction sectors, Gruzdev said Russia agreed with Turkish counterparts on the "Foreign Trade Action Plan."

Gruzdev also emphasized on the need to increase cooperation in the civil shipbuilding industry.

"Shipbuilding industry is in very strong position both in Turkey and Russia, and we see significant potential in this area," he added.