Putin ‘removes restrictions on operations of Turkish firms in Russia’

MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin has lifted restrictions on operations of Turkish companies in Russia and the ban on the employment of Turkish nationals in the Russian Federation, the TASS news agency has reported.The related decree “on removal of certain special economic measures against the Turkish Republic” was signed by Putin, the Kremlin press service stated on May 31, according to the news agency.As part of the decree, the list of categories of Turkish citizens entitled to visa-free travel to Russia has also been expanded.According to the decree, Turkish citizens in possession of service passports, flight and cabin crew, as well as businesspeople visiting Russia for short periods will be entitled to visa-free travel, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported.The decree also grants visa-free travel to diplomatic and consular representatives of Turkey and their families on the basis of the principle of reciprocity.Putin also instructed the Russian Foreign Ministry to notify Turkey of the partial renewal of a May 2010 agreement concerning the terms of mutual travel of citizens of the two countries.The decree will come into force following its publication in the Official Gazette,Moscow agreed to lift all sanctions imposed on imported items from Turkey apart from tomatoes on May 3, when the leaders of the two countries met in Sochi.Putin then said Moscow’s embargo on the import of tomatoes from Turkey and its visa restrictions on Turkish nationals will remain in place for the time being.Turkey and Russia signed a declaration in Istanbul on May 22 to remove restrictions on bilateral trade that were imposed after a jet crisis in 2015.The document was signed by the deputy prime ministers of Russia and Turkey, Arkady Dvorkovich and Mehmet Şimşek respectively, on the sidelines of the 25th anniversary summit of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC).Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım and his Russian counterpart Dimitry Medvedev witnessed the signing of the declaration, which aims to normalize and develop economic ties, and enhance the bilateral trade volume between Russia and Turkey.