Turkey, Russia to Build Logistics Center in Black Sea Basin
Asbarez
Jan 12th, 2010

MOSCOW (Hurriyet)-Turkey and Russia are planning to build a logistics
center in Krasnodar, located 1,500 kilometers south of Moscow. Along
with bilateral trade, the center will provide transportation, customs
and storage services to third countries.

A logistics center in southern Russia will contribute to growing
bilateral trade between Turkey and Russia and become a base for
Turkish transporters willing to be important actors in the region.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart
Vladimir Putin will discuss the joint projects in the scope of their
`strategic partnership’ Wednesday. Turkish exporters are looking
forward to hearing more positive news from Moscow after a customs
crisis was solved with Putin’s visit to Ankara in August.

The two leaders are expected to take concrete steps toward the
construction of a long-awaited joint logistics center in Krasnodar
province on account of the inclusion of Transportation Minister Binali
Yildirim and Foreign Trade Minister Zafer Caglayan in the visiting
delegation.

Krasnodar is located 1,500 kilometers south of Moscow and is close to
the Black Sea ports of Novorossiysk, Temruk, Taman, Kavkaz, Gelendzhik
and Tuapse.

Turkey, which seeks to export to Russia and other countries in the
Black Sea and Caucasus region more efficiently, began feasibility
studies in 2008. However, the Russia-Georgia War in August 2008 halted
their efforts as Turkish trucks faced difficulties crossing the
border.

`Having tackled all the customs problems, we’re now considering
building a logistics center in southern Russia with contributions from
both the public and private sector,’ an official from the Turkish
Foreign Trade Ministry was quoted as saying by Hurriyet.

The center is expected to be a key base reaching all countries around
the Black Sea in addition to Russia. `We will provide transportation,
storage, collection, export and customs services to third countries.
All Black Sea countries will able to reach these services,’ said the
same official, requesting anonymity.

Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin agreed to the project in
August when he visited Ankara in preparation for a subsequent trip by
Putin.

`In order to simplify legal procedures and boost trade, we’ve agreed
to establish a joint committee to do research on a logistics center
that would ease transportation, customs and logistics,’ Caglayan told
reporters in a joint press conference with Sechin.

Turkish and Russian officials have continued discussing the outcomes
of the feasibility reports at routine meetings since August. A road
map will be determined at a high-level meeting in either January or
February, official sources said.