Azerbaijan, Turkiye to introduce duty-free import of goods

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan and Turkiye plan to import 15 types of goods duty-free, the country’s Export and Investment Promotion Agency head, Yusif Abdullayev, said, Azernews reports.

He made the remarks during his speech at a special session on Azerbaijani-Turkish cooperation.

Abdullayev emphasized that the preferential trade agreement is a very important mechanism in order to achieve the goals set by the heads of states for the growth of bilateral trade in 2023.

“Under this agreement, 15 products from both countries will be exported duty-free. We would like the number of duty-free goods to grow, and the assortment of products to expand,” he said.

Moreover, speaking at the special session, Azerbaijan’s Economic Zones Development Agency Deputy Board Chairman Elkhan Shiriyev stated that the benefits are provided for entrepreneurs, who will carry out activities in the country’s liberated territories.

Noting that work is underway to increase the package of benefits for various categories of entrepreneurs, Shiriyev stated that it is expected that residents of the industrial zones of Karabakh will be exempt from tax and customs duties for 15 years.

“It also provides for exemption from fees and taxes on the import of raw materials. The implementation of these initiatives will increase the attractiveness of the industrial zones created in the liberated territories,” he said.

A special session of the Caspian Energy Forum, dedicated to Azerbaijani-Turkish cooperation was held on July 6. The event, hosted by Azerbaijan and Turkiye with the participation of officials and businessmen, exchanged views on the role of companies from both countries in the development of the region. The participants also discussed the issues of cooperation between Azerbaijani-Turkish businessmen in the international arena.

Azerbaijan and Turkiye collaborate in a variety of economic sectors and have completed major energy and infrastructure projects, such as Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, Baku-Tbilisi-Kars, and TANAP.

The two countries set up a goal to bring the mutual trade turnover to $15 billion in 2023. As of 2021, the trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $4.6 billion. So far, Turkiye is Azerbaijan’s second-largest investor followed by the UK.