Russia and Turkey have settled almost all the issues on the lifting of trade restrictions, the problem will be fully resolved before the meeting of the Russian-Turkish intergovernmental commission in Kazan, which is scheduled for October 20, the Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci said at the 86th international fair in Izmir.
"There were only one or two very small issues related to agricultural products. We agreed on all major issues. I am sure that all problems will be completely resolved until October 20, when we hold the meeting of the intergovernmental commission in Kazan," RIA Novosti cited him as saying.
The minister stressed that both the Russian and Turkish sides are determined to positively resolve the problem.
Zeybekci touched on the tomato issue. "In the near future we hope for a positive outcome of the talks with the Russian side on lifting the restrictions," the Minister of Economy specified.
A research fellow at the center for agrarian and food policy at RANEPA, Vasily Uzun, speaking with a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that, in fact, the issue of tomatoes is the only unresolved. "All other issues were agreed at the meeting of Putin and Erdogan several months ago. Let me remind you that the main supporter of preserving the ban on the import of Turkish tomatoes is the Minister of Agriculture Alexander Tkachev. Initially, he said that the domestic producers will suffer from the export of Turkish tomatoes," he pointed out.
As a result, the Russian authorities still do not intend to open the way for Turkish tomatoes. "Our agricultural producers are not ready to offer tomatoes that can compete with Turkish ones. It is clear that Ankara is very interested in removing this ban. But our farmers are not interested at all. I believe that it can be done only at the expense of other Turkish products, in exporting which Russia is interested," Vasily Uzun believes.
