Rome: Erdogan’s charm business in Meloni – Turkey -Italy Cooperation

Georgia Meloni’s “Charming Operation” by Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday, with the aim of a narrow multifaceted Turkish -Boy -Italian cooperation, which is indirectly but clearly concerned with Greece.

Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan met in Rome as part of the intergovernmental conference of their two countries and announced a large project.

The Turkish president attempts to emerge in a privileged partner of Italy, and by extension of the EU, in areas from the defense industry and energy projects to immigration, with common areas of cooperation in the Mediterranean and Libya, bypassing and downgrading the role of Greece, and therefore Greek interests. Is indicative The issue of Libya in which Rome exerts an influence, with which Athens has differences due to the Turkolibyan memorandum.

At the same time, thorny is alleged to remain for the Greek -Italian side the issue of the Hellenic Train in the shadow of the Tempe accident, and after the postponement of the Greek -Italy Cooperation Council in Rome on February 16th. Since 2017, TRAINOSE, which was subsequently renamed Hellenic Train, has been sold for 45m euros to Italian Ferrovie Dello Stato Italiane, the neighboring Railway Company of the neighbor.

At the same time, Ankara is “flirting” with and with the Package of 100 billion euros which the Commission has announced that they will be available in the context of a single European defense due to Russian threats.

Baykar’s defense agreement (led by Erdogan Selcouk Bayraktar’s groom) with Italian Leonardo for a common development of unmanned aircraft is of particular importance within the EU as it meets the conditions for Euro -Turkish partnerships in the draft premier.

As SKAI’s correspondent in Constantinople, Manolis Kostidis, pointed out, Erdogan stressed on Tuesday that Turkish companies see Italy as a gateway to the European market, and he wishes for Italian companies to see Turkey as a door to Asia.

A population of 2 billion can be approached in a few hours of flight from Istanbul, Turkish Airlines connects 9 Italian cities with Istanbul. This enormous potential for trade, investment and transport encourages us to set great and ambitious goals.

Beyond existing 1,500 Italian companies The Turkish goal is more Italians (and only) investors in Turkey, which has become a pole of attraction in its region and the world.

It would be in our interest to increase our joint efforts to get our share of the expected expansion in the field of security and defense in Europe, was the urging of the Turkish president.

But Georgia Melon also pointed out that Italy and Turkey will build a peak digital network 4,000 kilometers which will cross the Mediterranean that will improve connectivity between Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Let us enhance our energy cooperation in which we are already strategic partners specifically for the supply of natural gas through the TAP pipeline. In this area we intend to deepen our cooperation, to relieve the opportunities that will arise as to work with renewable energy and hydrogen.

“I am pleased, our bilateral conversation was particularly productive”The Italian prime minister said at the end of the meeting. “The current common declaration confirms the stability of our relationships and puts the bases needed to enhance our cooperation even more,” Melon added.

“I believe we have laid a good foundation for the excellent relations between Italy and Turkey,” Meloni said, adding that the relationship between the two countries far exceeds economic relations. “In the Euro -Mediterranean scenario, we are allies in the context of the Atlantic Alliance.”

The Turkish president, for his part, underlined: “From the first intergovernmental conference of 2008, Turkey’s relations with Italy are becoming more and more powerful every day. We find that our views coincide on important issues, such as the security of Europe and the Mediterranean and the transatlantic relationship. “

“I believe that in addition to the intense historical relations of our countries, the courageous and decisive approach adopted by Prime Minister Meloni has played a role in the cohesion.”Erdogan added.

“We are ready to work with energy projects that will benefit both our countries and the region In our common geography, the Mediterranean ‘, said the Turkish president, adding that:

“I believe that Italy, which is best aware of our country’s contribution to the stability and security of Europe and the Mediterranean and has supported our process of joining the European Union from the beginning, will continue this approach.”

The head of the Rome government, finally, emphasized that the volume of trade in the two countries has exceeded the target of 30 billion euros and that the new target today is to transcend, in the medium term. 40 billion euros.

At the same time, he said that large Turkish companies want to invest more in Italy. ‘Baykar with Leonardo are taking significant steps’, He noted while adding: “We are a strategic partner in energy and gas. We also want to move on to hydrogen.”

“The agreement on migration works,” Melona said, while the Turkish president stressed that “the priority, now, in terms of the Middle East, is to put a ceasefire again.”