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Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia state pledged Wednesday to deepen economic cooperation with Türkiye, with Prime Minister Hendrik Wust describing the Turkish economy as an indispensable part of Europe's value chain.
Speaking at the Türkiye-North Rhine-Westphalia Business Forum in Istanbul, Wust said longstanding flows of people, investment and ideas between the two sides had become increasingly important as trade barriers rise and supply chains face pressure.
“Our aim is to build on these strong ties and strengthen our cooperation even further,” he said.
The forum was jointly organized by Türkiye's Foreign Economic Relations Board, or DEIK, and Germany's NRW.Global Business trade agency.
Wust said the North Rhine-Westphalia government had agreed on a fast-track visa process for Turkish businesspeople to address lengthy processing times that hinder face-to-face cooperation.
He also backed efforts to modernize the nearly 30-year-old EU-Türkiye Customs Union and update European industrial policy to reflect changes in global supply chains.
Wust said Türkiye ranks as North Rhine-Westphalia's third-largest trading partner and remains a leading destination for foreign direct investment.
More than one-third of Turkish-owned companies in Germany are based in North Rhine-Westphalia, totaling about 1,300 businesses, he said.
Wust also pointed to Türkiye's onshore wind sector and investments in power generation and transmission infrastructure.
“We see that Türkiye has one of Europe's largest onshore wind markets,” he said.
He said energy prices and security are particularly important for North Rhine-Westphalia's heavy and energy-intensive industries.
New memorandums of understanding signed during the forum could support future partnerships and strengthen both economic and geopolitical ties, Wust added.
Serap Guler, a state minister at the German Federal Foreign Office, also reaffirmed Berlin's commitment to expanding economic cooperation with Türkiye and further integrating Turkish industry into European supply chains.
Guler said about 8,600 German companies operate in Türkiye, providing more than 100,000 direct jobs.
She said geopolitical tensions and supply chain risks were putting pressure on competitiveness and called for implementation of agreements reached during the German-Turkish Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue in May.
Guler said fully unlocking the economic potential of nearly 540 million people across the EU and Türkiye would require modernization of the Customs Union.
She called for the removal of tariff and non-tariff barriers, the use of rule-of-law mechanisms, and Türkiye's implementation of the agreement toward all EU member states.
Guler also said Germany was strongly advocating in Brussels for a “Made with Europe” approach under the EU Industrial Accelerator Act that would include key partners such as Türkiye.
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