THREE STATES BUT ONE NATION

Turgay Deniz is the President of the Turkish-Cypriot Chamber of Commerce (TCCC) founded in 1958. With over 3,500 members, it is the largest and most important organisation of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). TCCC has an exclusive status as a member of the International Chamber of Commerce and many other organisations. In addition, it is the sole corporate partner of the European Commission for the implementation of the Green Line regulations and is a member of the European Small Business Alliance. The North Cyprus Chamber of Commerce also represents the TRNC in official negotiations with the Greek Community of Cyprus.

Turgay Deniz visited Baku to join the 35th meeting of the Board of Directors of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture held on July 17-18, 2023.

"Turgay-bey, welcome to Azerbaijan. What are your impressions on Baku?"

"This is my first visit to Azerbaijan. I feel at home here. As to economic ties, I ask myself, "What have we done so far?" After all, we are brothers, together in joy and in sorrow. But I see that we have done nothing in terms of our economies. We buy nothing, and we sell nothing. We should strengthen our brotherhood through trade. We should support each other in all areas."

"What opportunities for co-operation are available?"

"The main sector of our economy is tourism. We have a beautiful coastline, very comfortable climate, especially in winter; it never snows.

"We have also a great potential to create a network of winter health resorts for elderly people. We believe that these resorts will attract elderly people from many countries of the world, especially from the East and Europe.

"Since Northern Cyprus is unrecognised and remains isolated, there are still many things to discover on the island. First come, first served. So there are ample opportunities for investment in Northern Cyprus.

"As to the trade, Cyprus is famous for its Hellim cheese, which is the only cheese in the world that does not melt on fire, grill, etc. It is quite respected in many cuisines around the world. We want Hellim to be recognised in the Azerbaijani cuisine as well. Azerbaijan also has different sorts of cheese. Since our dishes, sweets and food products are quite similar, we can engage in their mutual supply.

"One of the possible areas of bilateral co-operation can also be the repair and maintenance of marine vessels. This is sufficiently well developed in Northern Cyprus."

"Which countries are you main trade partners?"

"We have established an extensive trade turnover with Türkiye, which exceeds 60%. The trade turnover with the Far East countries and Europe is 9% and 15%, respectively. So why should we not have trade relations with Azerbaijan? There is a widely used phrase—one nation, two states. Since Northern Cyprus is also a Turkic country, we are actually three states, but one nation. So we are trying to cooperate with Azerbaijan in all spheres. We are brothers and can develop business partnership, co-operation in tourism, education and trade."

"What are the possibilities for co-operation in education?"

"For example, Northern Cyprus has about 20 universities with over 100,000 foreign students. 60% of them are students from Türkiye, about 40% are from the Persian Gulf countries, including Iran.

"Previously, there were many Azerbaijani students in Northern Cyrpus, but recently their number has decreased dramatically. We need to investigate the reasons for this decline. Education in our universities is provided in English and other foreign languages. After the graduation, students can easily continue their studies in European and Turkish universities."

"What was the purpose of your visit to Baku? Did you manage to hold the necessary meetings and negotiations?"

"In Baku, we met with Orkhan Mammadov, head of the Small and Medium Business Development Agency. But the main purpose of the visit was the 35th summit of the Board of Directors of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture attended by 57 countries. Northern Cyprus has an observer status in the organisation. Our mission is to expand the potential for co-operation, to study the issues of development of trade relations.

"We call Turkish-Cypriot Chamber of Commerce a flag bearer. After all, it was established in 1958 and is internationally legitimate. The Greek side of Cyprus also recognises our organisation, holds official meetings, while it does not recognise the officials of our republic. We are also members of the International Chamber of Commerce and have offices in Brussels, London and Ankara. Our organisation is also a legitimate intermediary in the cooperation of Northern Cyprus with the EU.

"Therefore, we have a proposal for business cooperation between Islamic and Turkic countries, which we will present at the next meeting of the organisation. There is a trade regime between Northern Cyprus and the EU called Green Line. Thanks to this initiative any products manufactured in Northern Cyprus can be delivered to the southern part of the island and to the EU countries as European goods without any customs restrictions. We want to present a similar 'green line' package to the Turkic countries and investors from Islamic countries for consideration. We invite them to Northern Cyprus to start producing goods jointly or as foreign investors. We can produce goods and then deliver them to the European market without taxes and without any customs and other restrictions. This is an important advantage. The goods will be delivered to Europe with officially registered documentation from our Chamber of Commerce, with no taxes or restrictions."

"Are there any plans to expand trade and economic relations with Turkic countries?"

"We need to intensify co-operation within the framework of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Currently, the organisation has five members states only: Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Türkiye and Uzbekistan. Northern Cyprus and Turkmenistan have observer status. So far, there are no customs preferences between the above five countries. 28 EU countries have managed to unite, eliminate customs barriers; their goods and services are delivered without restrictions. Turkic countries should do the same to increase the trade turnover. After all, the volume of trade relations between our countries is only 3% of their total trade turnover, which is depressing. Naturally, the trade turnover should be linked with each other. After all, there is an experience of economic co-operation between countries, when each side produces a component of goods and exchanges it. That is how we can ensure economic mutual support through production. Let us hope that we will be able to organise such production cooperation as soon as possible to promote and develop trade turnover."

"The expected opening of the Zangezur corridor will play an instrument role in uniting the Turkic world. How attractive is this transport corridor for Northern Cyprus?"

"We highly appreciate the values we share with Azerbaijan. The progress made by Azerbaijan in recent years is pleasing and inspiring. It occupies an important geographical position and is a brotherly country that can be an example for us when entering foreign markets. The idea of entering Central Asia through Azerbaijan is very attractive for us. Therefore, we are closely following the work and processes of opening the Zangezur corridor. It is expected that the corridor will strengthen co-operation and intensify trade between the Turkic world, and will be a tool to revive the historic Silk Road. We believe that it will improve logistical opportunities from a commercial point of view as well.

"In addition to its important geostrategic position, Northern Cyprus has a strong economic potential. 51 per cent of the coastline belongs to Northern Cyprus. Our republic also has an important potential in terms of port investments. We believe that Northern Cyprus can become an example for the development and progress of the maritime sector of Azerbaijan and related sectors. Therefore, it is likely to be useful and beneficial to consider developing co-operation between the two countries."

"Thank you for interesting conversation!"