President Saakashvili said on November 21 that, unlike “many European states”, Turkey had quickly finalized a free trade agreement with Georgia, without any “bureaucratic obstacles.”

The Georgian and Turkish sides signed a free trade agreement, plus an agreement on the avoidance of double taxation, in Tbilisi on November 21. 

“I want to thank [Turkish] President [Abdullah] Gül and [Turkish] Prime Minister [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan for their very bold and fast decisions in this respect, which would have taken decades in the case of many European countries,” President Saakashvili said at a joint news conference with his visiting Turkish counterpart. “The quick finalization of a free trade agreement was Mr. Gül’s initiative and many bureaucratic obstacles were removed thanks to the personal involvement of [President Gül].”

Turkey is Georgia’s main trading partner. Georgia’s trade turnover with Turkey doubled, exceeding USD 387 million, in the first half of 2007, according to the Georgian Department of Statistics.

President Saakashvili also said that the free trade agreement with Turkey would help Georgian entrepreneurs, particularly those involved in the export of agricultural products to Turkey.