Kuwaiti official says meeting offers opportunity to launch new ventures based on shared interests
KUWAIT: Turkey is looking to deepen its commercial ties with Kuwait and open new opportunities for partnerships across multiple sectors, Turkish Ambassador to Kuwait Tuba Nur Sonmez said on Wednesday. Speaking during a visit by a Turkish delegation from the Independent Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (MUSIAD) to the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Sonmez said Ankara is keen to build on recent momentum in bilateral relations.
She said ties between the two countries have seen “qualitative development” over the past period, beginning with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Kuwait in October, which followed the visit of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to Turkey in May 2024. According to Sonmez, the two visits resulted in an agreement to elevate relations to the level of a strategic partnership, with a target of raising bilateral trade to $5 billion. She said trade between Kuwait and Turkey rose by 0.52 percent in 2025 compared with 2024, reaching about $1.08 billion for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. Sonmez added that Kuwaiti investments in Turkey have reached around $2 billion, with 427 Kuwaiti companies currently operating in the Turkish market.
Assistant Director General of the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry Emad Alzaid said Kuwaiti and Turkish companies have built strong partnerships across sectors such as industry, trade, projects and services. He said the growth in trade reflects stable demand and continued engagement by the private sector in both countries, noting the importance of joint projects that support local industrial capacity, skills development and knowledge transfer. Alzaid said the meeting offered an opportunity to move from discussion to practical steps, including launching joint ventures and building business partnerships based on clarity and shared interests.
Emad Alzaid
Ambassador Tuba Nur Sonmez (center) speaks during the meeting.
New opportunities
Sonmez stressed that relations between the two countries extend beyond business, saying they are based on mutual respect, fraternity and shared values. These ties, she said, would help create a promising future for business communities in both countries. MUSIAD delegation head and board member Selim Sar said the association focuses on strengthening trade relations and building bridges with local partners, chambers of commerce and business organizations through memoranda of understanding.
He said MUSIAD operates a global business network with more than 14,000 members across 98 locations in 82 countries, including over 3,000 members outside Turkey, some of whom hold leadership positions. Sar said such visits help identify opportunities in different markets, adding that findings would be submitted to the association’s headquarters, followed by the organization of sector-specific delegations in areas including energy, food industries, furniture, chemicals and tourism.
As part of their visit to Kuwait, the MUSIAD delegation also paid visits to the Union of Investment Companies (UIC) and the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), the Turkish Embassy said in a statement.
“These meetings included comprehensive exchanges of views and assessments regarding Türkiye–Kuwait economic and trade relations, as well as ongoing initiatives aimed at the business and investment sector,” the Embassy said. – Agencies
