Dear friends,
Thank you very much for attending today’s seminar. Your very presence testifies to the interest of Turkey’s business community in strengthening the links between your country and Luxembourg.
Turkey has for a long time, too long of a time, been absent from Luxembourg’s commercial radar. Our combined trade of 170 million Euros is far below the potential of our two economies and does not do justice to the opportunities at hand. I am glad that 57 businesspeople, representing 40 companies, have joined me on this visit. They are the living proof that businesses of all sizes have recognised Turkey’s potential as a dynamic economy, hosting modern companies that are more than able to compete in the international marketplace.
Turkey is nevertheless more than just a market of 73 million consumers with increasing spending power. Turkey is, and has historically been, the hub linking Europe and the Middle East and Central Asia. Straddling European and oriental cultures, just like the city of Istanbul, its business representatives look both East and West. The opportunities at hand in this larger region, with fast-growing economies fuelled by their richness in natural resources, are very often exploited with the help of Turkish involvement. From Astana to Baku, from Ashgabat to Baghdad and from Sofia to hopefully soon again Tehran, Turkey’s entrepreneurs are busy investing and creating commercial networks throughout what used to be the Ottoman Empire. European companies have recognized this role of the Turkish business community as a bridge towards the countries of the old Silk Road.
Europe needs this bridge. It needs Turkey, it needs their people, it needs their inherent talent to be facilitators with the Muslim world. Unfortunately, Turkey’s relationship with the European Union has been marked by ups and downs, by hesitations and misunderstandings. Some claim that the European Union’s population is not ready yet to accept Turkey as a member. I am convinced that the problem does not lie with Turkey, issues like Cyprus not withstanding. It is a hesitation about the EU as such, about the direction it shall take, what it represents and where it will evolve. Europe has become so complex that its people have difficulty understanding it. The result of Ireland’s referendum on the Lisbon treaty is a mark in point. Confusion reigns and confusion leads to conservative attitudes, to prudence about taking steps ahead. I hope that Turkey’s population understands this.
Nevertheless, I have to say that conditions for taking Turkey closer to the European Union have never been as good. Maybe I am a born optimist but I dare to say that soon we will see progress and the stalled negotiations will move on.
Europe has to understand that Turkey is of a key strategic importance to Europe, by itself and through its economic dynamic, as well as through its role in the quest to secure Europe’s supply of energy. If we do not want to put all our eggs in the Russian basket, the only way to bring Caspian and Central Asian oil and gas to the European markets leads through Turkish territory.
The rising prices for energy and especially the spectacular ups and downs at the markets, have shown us how important it us for us all to diversify our sources of supply in order to make the market as efficient as possibly through increased competition. Oil can be shipped with tankers and changing supplier is relatively easy. For gas, the cleaner and somewhat cheaper alternative, the possibilities are more limited. Unless there is massive investment in LPG technology, the only way to transport natural gas remains the pipeline. These umbilical cords link buyer and supplier.
The resulting interdependence, if recognised, should lead to cooperation. Nobody gains if this very special relationship is troubled. I do not belong to those who are afraid of Russia. I don’t believe that there will be a politically motivated fiddling with the oil and gas valves in the foreseeable future. I believe in the forces of the market and in healthy competition on a level playing field. Luxembourg actively cooperates with Gazprom in a joint-venture. But Luxembourg is also a shrewd customer that wants the best possible conditions for its energy contracts.
During my discussions yesterday with Minister Tüzmen, I learned a lot about your government’s reform policies. Hard work has been done to improve the basic macroeconomic indicators, bringing public spending and inflation under control and diversify the economic tissue of the country. Turkey has moved upwards on the quality scale of its products. Cheap labour is no longer the selling point to investors. Focus has been put on innovation, using the most valuable natural resource Turkey has to offer: well-educated young people. I visited Bilkent University’s Cyberpark and incubator for start-up companies and have to underline that the support offered and the projects pursued are at par, and sometimes of better quality, than everything I have seen of the like in Western Europe.
I have seen complementarities between our economies, sectors that we both develop, where we head in similar directions. Turkey is aiming to become a logistics hub between Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Luxembourg is already a first-class distribution centre for goods in the very heart of the European Union. The Government is putting great effort into fine-tuning our regulatory framework as well as the infrastructure needed to remain at the cutting edge of the industry. Luxembourg is specialised in goods that arrive by air – Cargolux is one of the world’s leading freight-only airlines and operates to over 90 destinations, among which Istanbul. We will need to look at this link, which for the time being looks to weak to me with only one flight per week.
Logistics “made in Luxembourg�? is nevertheless not only airborne. The CEO of CFL Cargo, a specialist player in the railway freight business, is in the room today and wishes to study the Turkish market in order to investigate opportunities for the creation of better railway services between Luxembourg and Turkey, linking factories to distributors, producers to markets. Nowadays, in times of high energy costs, railways become an increasingly interesting alternative, in financial as well as environmental terms, to road transport.
A second vector of future growth that both our countries have discovered is health technology and medical devices. I think Turkey has a head start in this field, compared to Luxembourg. The reason, I suppose, lies with the excellent network of research facilities at your universities and the government’s policy to encourage researchers and students to take their discoveries and market them through their own companies. We are only at the beginning of this development and I think that we may be able to learn from your experience.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear friends,
Turkey and Luxembourg have for too long ignored each other. A huge potential for cooperation has been missed. Partly, this has been my fault since it took me to long to bring a delegation to your wonderful country.
Europe and Turkey need each other. Today more than ever. If we make abstraction of some shrill populist statements, I am convinced that no European political leader can deny this fact. The Turkish bride received its engagement ring some 40 years ago. We should not let her wait any longer, unless we risk that she goes looking for another potential husband. I congratulate the Turkish government on the reforms that it has undertaken in the recent years and I remain positive that if it continues down this path, then we will be able to welcome Turkey into the European family very soon.
Thank you very much.