Istanbul, September 2023 – Japan and Turkey have negotiated on the cooperation to support postwar reconstruction of Ukraine, according to Nikkei Asia.

The Business Forum organized by the Japan External Trade Organization resulted in the joint statement of Omer Bolat, Turkey’s trade minister, and Yasutoshi Nishimura, Japan’s minister of economy, trade and industry, teaming up to assist Ukraine in the recovery of its war-damaged infrastructure.

According to Nikkei Asia, Turkish Ukrainian Business Association will host the first trilateral business forum on 21 September, 2023 in Istanbul for Turkish, Japanese and Ukrainian company representatives and officials to discuss cooperation in energy, transportation, health care, infrastructure, home building and investments. The event will be supported by the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The second trilateral forum is expected in Japan.

Turkish trade minister Bolat commented, “Our most important goal is to create a synergy and undertake important projects by combining the entrepreneurial skills and local market knowledge of Turkish contractors with the financing capabilities and technologies of Japan.”

Turkish and Japanese contractors often join their forces in Turkey, the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia within infrastructure, industrial and energy projects.

Also, earlier, companies coming from the two countries, with Japanese financing, constructed a terminal at Kyiv’s Boryspil International Airport.

For reference: In August 2022, Turkish and Ukrainian ministers signed a Memorandum of Understanding for reconstruction during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Ukraine.

Japan signed a similar MoU in June 2023.