Tag: Xi

  • Uighur protests as China’s Xi Jinping visits Turkey

    Uighur protests as China’s Xi Jinping visits Turkey

    Activists from China’s Muslim Uighur minority burnt Chinese flags in Ankara on Tuesday where China’s leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping was holding talks with Turkish officials on regional issues.

    About 60 Turkic-speaking Uighurs from China’s northwestern Xinjiang province protested outside the hotel where Xi was staying in the Turkish capital on the last leg of a trip that also took him to the United States and Ireland.

    Xi, almost sure to succeed Hu Jintao as president in just over a year, praised Turkey’s role in trying to resolve issues such as the Iranian nuclear dispute and Middle East conflicts.

    Waving the flag of East Turkestan, pale blue with a white star and crescent, the protesters burnt a Chinese flag and a poster of Xi before police moved in to disperse them.

    Rights groups accuse China of abuses during a crackdown after Uighur riots in 2009 and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan then described the events as a “genocide”.

    Turkey is home to thousands of Uighurs who have fled Xinjiang since the Chinese Communists took over the region in 1949.

    Xi said China had made great strides to raise the living standards of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang.

    Turkey and China are at either end of a political and economic axis stretching along the old silk road though Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan. Both have strong, sometimes competing economic interests in the region.

    Turkey, now the world’s 16th biggest economy and only second to China in growth last year, has projected itself as a stable Muslim democracy, making it a key player at a time of turmoil and unrest in the Middle East.

    “A member of the G20 with a growing economy and an important country in the Middle East, Turkey has for a long time tried to bring stability and development to the region and played an active role in trying to solve ‘hot’ issues,” Xi told Turkey’s Sabah newspaper listing Afghanistan, the Iranian nuclear and Middle East peace efforts.

    BILLION DOLLAR DEALS Turkey has sought to mediate between the West and Iran in a dispute over Iran’s nuclear programme and has broadly shared China’s opposition to stronger sanctions against Tehran.

    But on Syria their positions have been sharply at odds. While Turkey has taken a leading role in pressuring Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad to step down, China, along with Russia, this month blocked a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that backed an Arab plan urging him to quit.

    China has also not decided whether to accept an invitation to discuss Syria with other world powers this week in Tunisia, a meeting Turkey’s foreign minister will attend and Ankara hopes will keep up pressure for Assad to step down. Xi met President Abdullah Gul on Tuesday and signed seven bilateral economic agreements.

    The central banks of Turkey and China signed a three-year currency swap agreement worth $1.6 billion which will be effective for three years, both sides said. The two countries could discuss extending its maturity after that.

    China has signed a series of bilateral currency agreements with foreign countries as part of efforts to promote the use of the yuan in cross-boarder trade and investment.

    The Turkish energy ministry also said China’s Avic International and Turkey’s Hema Endustri, a Turkish engineering manufacturing company, will sign a $1 billion deal for power plant and coal production equipment.

    Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said the agreement could lead to cooperation with China on building Turkey’s first nuclear power plant. Xi later travelled to Istanbul for talks with Erdogan, who is recovering from surgery at home there. Citing prime ministerial officials, Turkish state media said the two men met for one hour where they agreed to increase economic cooperation.

    During the meeting, which was closed to the media, Erdogan accepted a formal invitation by Xi to visit China and said he would travel there in the coming months, state-run Anatolian news agency reported. On Wednesday, Xi attends a business forum in Istanbul, where he is likely to be assailed by exporters eager to try to bridge a gaping trade gap. China is Turkey’s 15th biggest export market with nearly $2.5 billion of Turkish goods sold there last year, a rise of 8.7 percent. But some $21.6 billion worth of Chinese goods were imported to Turkey in 2011, up 26 percent from 2010.

    via Uighur protests as China’s Xi Jinping visits Turkey – World – DNA.

  • Turkey’s rolling out the red carpet for trade partners beyond Europe

    Turkey’s rolling out the red carpet for trade partners beyond Europe

    ISTANBUL // Increased efforts by Turkey to attract Arab investors and improve relations with China are signs that Ankara is looking for new partners beyond Europe, analysts have said.

    AD20120224593390 Turkey s Presid

    “Turkey cannot wait for Europe,” Idris Kardas, chief coordinator of the Platform for Global Challenges, a think tank at Istanbul’s Bilgi University, said this week.

    Some countries in Europe, the traditional focus of Turkey’s foreign and economic policies, are battling a severe debt crisis. Therefore, Ankara is reaching out to other countries to develop its economy and regional clout, Mr Kardas said in an interview.

    After hosting dozens of businessmen from the Gulf region representing sectors like energy, construction, agriculture and banking this month, Turkey this week rolled out the red carpet the red carpet for Xi Jingping, China’s vice-president, who is expected to move to the top post in about a year. Mr Xi chose Turkey as the last leg of a diplomatic tour seen as a dress rehearsal for Chinese leadership.

    The visit came shortly after Ali Babacan, the Turkish deputy prime minister overseeing economic policy, confirmed that Turkey was looking for new partners outside Europe.

    About 45 per cent of Turkish exports have been going to Europe, Mr Babacan told a CNN panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January. “But the good part of the picture is 55 per cent of our exports go elsewhere and those non-European markets are growing quite fast and that is playing a very good balancing role,” Mr Babacan said at the meeting.

    Deniz Gokce, an economist who writes a column for the Turkish Aksam newspaper, said that trend was partly a result of Turkey’s experience of being rejected by the European Union, where major member states have reservations about Turkey’s membership bid.

    “If Germany and France do not want us, then adios,” Mr Gokce told The National yesterday. Trying to find new economic partners elsewhere was an intelligent move by the Turkish government, he said: “Getting closer to places that have the capital.”

    Mr Kardas said Turkey was not the only country looking for alternatives to Europe. “China has been severely affected by the crisis in Europe, so it also needs new partners.”

    He said China also recognised Turkey’s growing regional role. “China regards Turkey as an important player in the Middle East,” he said.

    Mr Xi told a Turkish-China business forum in Istanbul on Wednesday that Turkish and Chinese companies signed agreements worth nearly US$4.3 billion (Dh15.79bn) during his visit, according to Turkish and Chinese media reports. On Tuesday, the Chinese vice-president met with Abdullah Gul, the president, and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister.

    Mr Erdogan accepted an invitation to visit China in April, according to Zafer Caglayan, the Turkish trade minister.

    “Turkey has become one of the world’s most interesting countries,” Mr Xi told the business forum. China and Turkey have agreed to increase their trade volume from about $20bn now to $100bn by 2020.

    Both sides played down political differences during Mr Xi’s visit. Members of China’s Uighur community in exile protested against Mr Xi’s visit in Ankara, but the Turkish government did not address the issue in public.

    Mr Erdogan, who accused China of “genocide” against the Uighurs three years ago, was quoted by the state-run Chinese newspaper China Daily as telling Mr Xi that Turkey “never allowed any activity on its territory that aims to undermine China’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

    Differences over Syria were also put aside. While Turkey is calling for the Syrian leader Bashar Al Assad to hand over power, China vetoed a resolution in the United Nations Security Council calling on Mr Assad to quit. But both sides refrained from commenting publicly on the issue during Mr Xi’s visit.

    Turkey has been enjoying an impressive economic boom that has more than tripled the country’s gross domestic product between 2002 and 2010, when it reached about $736bn. In an effort to keep that momentum going, Turkey has started to advertise itself as an alternative to Europe to attract foreign investors.

    Speaking at the first business forum of Turkey and the six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Istanbul this month, Mehmet Simsek, Turkey’s minister of finance, said his country was offering attractive investment conditions.

    Turkey “has very good opportunities in many sectors – agriculture, tourism, energy, health,” Mr Simsek said. “At the Gulf, there are capabilities, funds, resources. It is a wonderful combination.”

    During a visit to Dubai in January, Mr Gul invited Arab businessmen to his country and said Europe no longer had large potential. “Europe has grown as much as it can grow,” Mr Gul said, according to Turkish media. “There are no new buildings, roads, subways and airports left to be built. And Europe’s population is ageing.”

    via Turkey’s rolling out the red carpet for trade partners beyond Europe – The National.

  • China Inks Contracts Worth $4.3 Billion With Turkey

    China Inks Contracts Worth $4.3 Billion With Turkey

    (RTTNews) – Boosting bilateral trade, China on Wednesday signed a slew of contracts and deals worth $4.3 billion with Turkish firms on the sidelines of the visit of Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping.

    Bilateral trade between the two countries increased from some $1 billion in 2001 to nearly $19 billion in 2011 with China emerging Turkey’s third biggest trading partner, the Xinhua news agency reported quoting Chinese official statistics.

    Since 2001, Chinese companies have signed with Turkish firms project-contracting deals worth over $10 billion, among which construction of the Ankara-Istanbul high-speed railway is the biggest joint project.

    Addressing a China-Turkish business forum in Istanbul, Xi called for more efforts to boost trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.

    He said efforts should be made in elevating bilateral economic cooperation, namely, to increase political trust, to explore more cooperation fields and deepen substantial cooperation, to join hands to reject trade protectionism and to enhance cultural exchange and people-to-people communication.

    Xi said his current visit was aimed at deepening traditional friendship and consolidating strategic relations between the two countries.

    Xi, who arrived in Turkey on Monday had talks with President Abdullah Gul, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek in Ankara.

    by RTT Staff Writer

    via China Inks Contracts Worth $4.3 Billion With Turkey.

  • Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping Meets with Istanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu

    Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping Meets with Istanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu

    On February 21, 2012, visiting Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping met with Istanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu in Istanbul.

    Vice President Xi said that he had a candid and in-depth exchange of views with the Turkish leaders on bilateral relations and major issues of common concern during his visit to Turkey. The two sides reached a lot of important consensus and signed a number of cooperation documents. Vice President Xi’s visit to Turkey was productive.

    Vice President Xi said that Istanbul has a unique geographical advantage of being the place where Asia and Europe meet. Istanbul has a long history and diverse cultures and is full of the vitality of the modern economy. Istanbul plays an important role as the bridge and link for the friendly relations between China and Turkey. Istanbul Province is the sister province of China’s Guangdong Province. Istanbul City is the sister city of Shanghai City. There are more and more Chinese tourists traveling to Istanbul. China encourages Chinese enterprises to invest in Turkey, especially to participate in the economic construction of Istanbul. China also welcomes the businessmen of Istanbul Province to seek develop opportunities and explore new areas of mutually beneficial cooperation in China. Xi expressed the hope that the exchanges between local provinces and cities could increase mutual understanding between the two peoples and enrich the bilateral mutually beneficial cooperation. He also hoped that the Governor could continue to care for and support the cause of bilateral friendship and make positive contributions to enhancing mutual understanding and friendship between the two countries and peoples.

    Mutlu said that the people of Istanbul were honored and proud to receive Vice President Xi. Both Turkey and China have long histories and civilizations. In recent years, the two economies have both achieved rapid development. The two sides have a lot of future-oriented cooperation opportunities and projects. Istanbul is willing to continue to play a constructive role in developing the friendly relations and cooperation between Turkey and China. He hoped that the rapid development of bilateral mutually beneficial cooperation will bring more benefits to both peoples.

    via Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping Meets with Istanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu.

  • UPDATE 3-Uighur protests as China’s Xi visits Turkey

    UPDATE 3-Uighur protests as China’s Xi visits Turkey

    * Turkish PM called 2009 Chinese crackdown on riots “genocide”

    * Uighur protesters burn Chinese flag, Xi poster

    * China is Turkey’s 15th biggest export market

    * Erdogan says will visit China in coming months (Adds meeting with Erdogan)

    By Tulay Karadeniz

    ANKARA, Feb 21 (Reuters) – Activists from China’s Muslim Uighur minority burnt Chinese flags in Ankara on Tuesday where China’s leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping was holding talks with Turkish officials on regional issues.

    About 60 Turkic-speaking Uighurs from China’s northwestern Xinjiang province protested outside the hotel where Xi was staying in the Turkish capital on the last leg of a trip that also took him to the United States and Ireland.

    Xi, almost sure to succeed Hu Jintao as president in just over a year, praised Turkey’s role in trying to resolve issues such as the Iranian nuclear dispute and Middle East conflicts.

    Waving the flag of East Turkestan, pale blue with a white star and crescent, the protesters burnt a Chinese flag and a poster of Xi before police moved in to disperse them.

    Rights groups accuse China of abuses during a crackdown after Uighur riots in 2009 and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan then described the events as a “genocide”. Turkey is home to thousands of Uighurs who have fled Xinjiang since the Chinese Communists took over the region in 1949.

    Xi said China had made great strides to raise the living standards of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang.

    Turkey and China are at either end of a political and economic axis stretching along the old silk road though Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan. Both have strong, sometimes competing economic interests in the region.

    Turkey, now the world’s 16th biggest economy and only second to China in growth last year, has projected itself as a stable Muslim democracy, making it a key player at a time of turmoil and unrest in the Middle East.

    “A member of the G20 with a growing economy and an important country in the Middle East, Turkey has for a long time tried to bring stability and development to the region and played an active role in trying to solve ‘hot’ issues,” Xi told Turkey’s Sabah newspaper listing Afghanistan, the Iranian nuclear and Middle East peace efforts.

    BILLION DOLLAR DEALS

    Turkey has sought to mediate between the West and Iran in a dispute over Iran’s nuclear programme and has broadly shared China’s opposition to stronger sanctions against Tehran.

    But on Syria their positions have been sharply at odds.

    While Turkey has taken a leading role in pressuring Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad to step down, China, along with Russia, this month blocked a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that backed an Arab plan urging him to quit.

    China has also not decided whether to accept an invitation to discuss Syria with other world powers this week in Tunisia, a meeting Turkey’s foreign minister will attend and Ankara hopes will keep up pressure for Assad to step down.

    Xi met President Abdullah Gul on Tuesday and signed seven bilateral economic agreements.

    The central banks of Turkey and China signed a three-year currency swap agreement worth $1.6 billion which will be effective for three years, both sides said. The two countries could discuss extending its maturity after that.

    China has signed a series of bilateral currency agreements with foreign countries as part of efforts to promote the use of the yuan in cross-boarder trade and investment.

    The Turkish energy ministry also said China’s Avic International and Turkey’s Hema Endustri, a Turkish engineering manufacturing company, will sign a $1 billion deal for power plant and coal production equipment.

    Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said the agreement could lead to cooperation with China on building Turkey’s first nuclear power plant.

    Xi later travelled to Istanbul for talks with Erdogan, who is recovering from surgery at home there. Citing prime ministerial officials, Turkish state media said the two men met for one hour where they agreed to increase economic cooperation.

    During the meeting, which was closed to the media, Erdogan accepted a formal invitation by Xi to visit China and said he would travel there in the coming months, state-run Anatolian news agency reported.

    On Wednesday, Xi attends a business forum in Istanbul, where he is likely to be assailed by exporters eager to try to bridge a gaping trade gap.

    China is Turkey’s 15th biggest export market with nearly $2.5 billion of Turkish goods sold there last year, a rise of 8.7 percent. But some $21.6 billion worth of Chinese goods were imported to Turkey in 2011, up 26 percent from 2010. (Additional reporting by Jon Hemming, Orhan Coskun and Jonathon Burch; Writing by Jon Hemming; Editing by Maria Golovnina)

    via UPDATE 3-Uighur protests as China’s Xi visits Turkey | Reuters.