Russia sees Türkiye as its key partner

Russian State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Head Leonid Slutsky has said that Türkiye remains a key partner for Russia.

He expressed hope for increased cooperation, including through the parliament, Lenta.ru reports, citing his Telegram channel.

Slutsky also said he took part in the inauguration ceremony of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as a member of the Russian delegation headed by Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin.

Economic and trade relations constitute the driving force behind Turkish-Russian relations. Russia has been one of the most important trade partners of Türkiye. Trade volume between the two states reached $26,309 billion in 2019, with Türkiye’s $3,854 billion worth of exports and $22,454 billion in imports. A total number of 1,972 projects with a total value of over $75,7 billion have been realized so far by the Turkish contractors in Russia, while reciprocal investments have reached $10 billion each.

Energy constitutes one of the most important elements of relations between Türkiye and Russia. With TurkStream and Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant projects, cooperation in the field of energy is being carried further with Russia, which is among our leading energy suppliers. TurkStream Natural Gas Pipeline has been inaugurated on 8 January 2020.

Cooperation in the field of tourism between Türkiye and Russia constitutes another vital aspect of bilateral relations. With more than 7 million Russian tourists in 2019, a new record was broken. Russian tourists are the first tourists visiting Türkiye in recent years.

Türkiye has an Embassy in Moscow, Consulates-General in St Petersburg, Kazan and Novorossisk and an Honorary Consulate in Ekaterinburg. The Russian Federation has an Embassy in Ankara, Consulates-General in Istanbul, Antalya and Trabzon, and an Honorary Consulate in İzmir.