ANKARA, February 10. /TASS/. Trade turnover between Russia and Turkey last year exceeded the pre-crisis level, Russia’s Ambassador to Turkey Alexei Yerkhov said in an interview with Russian media on occasion of Diplomats’ Day.
"According to preliminary data, bilateral trade turnover last year reached nearly $25.4bln. This figure really exceeds the so-called pre-crisis level. This means that compared with last year we increased our trade turnover by 20-25%," the diplomat said.
The ambassador also noted that "this growth was achieved in rather challenging conditions, which international trade relations are undergoing in general."
Speaking on trade in national currencies, the ambassador said there are good prospects in this sphere. "According to our assessments, now up to 10% of bilateral trade operations are carried out in this trade regime," he said, noting that the initiative comes from economic entities themselves. "They are carrying out these operations in the framework of their mutual settlements."
"The work in this direction is underway, but it is early now to speak about any particular projects or prospects, moreover this will depend on the environment in international trade. Nevertheless, we have prospects in this area and I believe they are not bad ones," he stressed.
Earlier Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced plans to bring bilateral trade turnover to $100bln. The two leaders control and hold talks on this issue.