BOGOTA -(Dow Jones)- Colombia plans to start free trade talks with Turkey later this year, part of an ongoing effort by Bogota to broaden its trade ties around the world as hopes for a free trade agreement with the U.S. remain in doubt.
A statement from Colombia’s trade ministry said officials from Turkey and Colombia met earlier this week in Ankara and agreed that a first round of talks could begin in Bogota as early as late May.
The announcement comes a few weeks after the trade ministry said it hoped to wrap up a free trade deal with South Korea by late June and that it is also aiming for a free trade agreement with Japan.
Colombia for years has been vying for a permanent free trade agreement with the U.S., its main trading partner, but lawmakers in Washington have so far failed to ratify any such deal.
That’s led to frustration in Bogota, and President Juan Manuel Santos said recently that if a deal with the U.S. isn’t formalized soon, Colombia will give up trying. In the meantime, he said his government will continue pursuing other trade deals around the globe.
Colombia’s push to increase the number of countries it trades with is also in response to a 2009 decision by Venezuela, its neighbor and a major trading partner, to begin cutting back on trade due in part to Bogota’s close ties with the U.S.
Trade between Colombia and Turkey is minimal, reaching just $271 million last year. Colombia exported $214 million worth of products to Turkey, including coal. Turkey in turn shipped about $57 million worth of goods, including artillery parts, auto parts and textiles.
-By Dan Molinski, Dow Jones Newswires; 57-310-867-6542; dan.molinski@ dowjones.com
via Colombia Plans To Start Free Trade Talks With Turkey.