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Moldovan Prime Minister Vasile Tofan said relations between Moldova and Türkiye are very strong in the economic, cultural and political fields, adding that the two countries should aim to increase their trade volume to $2 billion.
Tofan assessed Türkiye-Moldova relations, economic cooperation, energy investments and the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war on the region in an interview with Turkish news agency Anadolu in Istanbul.
Describing the current state of relations between Türkiye and Moldova as “excellent,” Tofan said he was grateful to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his support.
“I think we have excellent relations,” Tofan said. “I am very grateful to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the interest he has shown in our country and for being such a good partner to us.”
Tofan said relations are also developing in the economic and cultural fields, adding that Turkish companies operating in Moldova make a significant contribution to the country’s economy.
He said Turkish companies have a strong desire to invest in Moldova.
“There are about 1,200 Turkish companies investing in Moldova,” Tofan said. “We are pleased to see businesses coming from Türkiye to Moldova for profitable investments.”
Tofan said Turkish companies operate in many sectors, including road construction, energy, accommodation and health tourism.
“We would like to see more investment from Türkiye in Moldova,” he said.
Tofan said his visit to Istanbul was private, noting that he had promised his eldest son they would swim across the Bosporus together.
“I think a father should keep the promise he made to his son,” he said.
Tofan said he also decided to hold meetings with business representatives in Istanbul and invited Turkish investors to invest in Moldova.
“Moldova is moving forward on the path of European Union integration,” Tofan said.
“The country is moving very quickly, and I think Moldova can be a window to the European Union, an export platform for businesses coming from Türkiye,” he added.
Tofan said mutual trade volume between Türkiye and Moldova has reached about $1 billion, adding that this corresponds to about 5% of Moldova’s gross domestic product.
He said Türkiye is therefore a very important trade partner for Moldova.
Pointing out that Türkiye is one of the region’s strong industrial countries, Tofan said Moldova imports many products from Türkiye.
“We import many things from Türkiye because Türkiye is an industrial giant in the region,” he said.
Tofan said Turkish industry could produce in Moldova and open up to the EU market.
“We want to bring more of these industries to Moldova so that these sectors can use Moldova as a platform for exports to the European Union by benefiting from the free trade agreement with the European Union and other partners,” he said.
Sharing his targets for trade volume, Tofan said the two countries should aim to double bilateral trade.
“I come from the business world. I like very ambitious targets, so we should aim to at least double our mutual trade and reach $2 billion,” he said.
Tofan said annual growth of about 20% to 25% would be enough to reach that target.
“If we grow our mutual trade volume by about 24%, we can double this volume within two years,” he said. “I think this is an ambitious target, but definitely one we can achieve.”
Tofan said the Russia-Ukraine war has also affected Moldova.
“We strongly condemn Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine,” he said. “In this conflict, although we are a neutral country and maintain this neutrality, we are clearly on Ukraine’s side.”
“In fact, we want Türkiye to be more involved in our region,” Tofan said.
Emphasizing that the Gagauz people serve as a bridge with Türkiye, Tofan said preserving their national identity was important.
“The Gagauz minority is a Turkish-speaking minority in Moldova and is very valuable to us,” he said. “I think this is a very important value for Moldova. We want them to speak the Gagauz language, this Turkish language.”
Tofan said Moldova would welcome Türkiye taking a stronger geopolitical stance in the country, especially through ties with Gagauzia.
“That is why we can only welcome Türkiye taking a stronger geopolitical stance in Moldova, especially by building the Gagauzia-Türkiye bridge,” he said.
Tofan said Moldova has made rapid progress in renewable energy, with the share of energy generated from renewable sources exceeding 30% of the country’s total production.
He said Turkish companies have already invested in Moldova’s energy sector and invited more Turkish firms to invest in the field.
Tofan said Moldova could be a reliable partner in energy exports to the region.
“There is an electricity deficit in the region,” he said. “Moldova’s very attractive legislation and the very fast decision-making process of regulatory institutions create a favorable environment for businesses from Türkiye to establish renewable energy plants in Moldova and export energy to the region, including Ukraine.”
Tofan said he wants more tourists from Türkiye to visit Moldova, especially the Gagauzia region.
Pointing out that Gagauzia is an important bridge with Türkiye, Tofan described it as a beautiful part of Moldova.
“I think this place, Gagauzia, is a very beautiful part of Moldova,” he said. “Turkish is spoken there, so I am sure visitors from Türkiye will be able to understand the people of Gagauzia.”
Tofan said about 400,000 people from Moldova choose Türkiye for holidays every year and invited Turkish tourists to see Moldova’s beauty as well.
Asked about problems Turkish citizens sometimes face when entering Moldova, Tofan said he was saddened by the situation.
He said Moldova has to be careful about security because of the conflict environment in the region.
“The reason for this is that we are still in a conflict zone and, given that there are many people trying to represent Russian interests, we have to be careful, and unfortunately, many legitimate tourists coming from Türkiye are also affected,” he said.
Tofan said he had told security forces and border police that people’s rights must be respected.
“We must show maximum respect to people and minimize these unfortunate incidents,” he said.
Tofan said the problems Turkish citizens face when entering Moldova would be resolved.
“We will fix this so that legitimate and well-intentioned people from Türkiye can travel to Moldova and see the beauty of our country,” he said.
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