ISTANBUL

Turkey is an important strategic partner for Ukraine, Denys Shmyhal, the prime minister of the eastern European country, said on Sunday. 

He attended a roundtable session by the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Turkey (DEIK) in Istanbul as part of his first official visit to Turkey.

Underlining the growing cooperation on both economic and political fronts, he said: “Ukraine wants grow and develop together with Turkey."

Sharing that Ukraine took some recent steps to reform its health sector, and facilitate investments, Shmyal said his country wants to make use of Turkish expertise in the areas of infrastructure, construction and energy.

He said that a free trade agreement would be a great impetus to flourishing Turkish-Ukrainian relations.

Following the session, Shmyal met Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa Varank, and Ismail Demir, the head of the Presidency of Defense Industries.

Speaking to the press before the meeting, Varank highlighted the historical relations between the two countries, saying it is time to move further ahead.

Another meeting of the joint delegation, attended by senior representatives of Turkish defense and aerospace companies, was also held.

*Writing by Ahmet Gencturk