FREE TRADE AGREEMENT BETWEEN TÜRKIYE AND KOSOVO[1]
(GOODS)

NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 17 JUNE 2025

Chairperson: H.E. Mr José VALENCIA (Ecuador)

1.1.  The 113^th Session of the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (hereinafter "CRTA" or the "Committee") was convened in Airgram _WTO/AIR/RTA/39/Rev.1 dated 6 June 2025.

1.2.  Under Agenda Item 8.1, the CRTA considered the Free Trade Agreement between Türkiye and Kosovo, goods (hereinafter "the Agreement" or "FTA"). The Chair stated that the Factual Presentation had been prepared by the Secretariat on its own responsibility in full consultation with the Parties, in accordance with paragraph 7(b) of the Transparency Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements (document _WT/L/671).

1.3.  The Chair recalled that during the CRTA meeting of 4 March 2009, Members had agreed to consider RTAs involving non-Members under the Transparency Mechanism's procedures. Members had made it clear that consideration of such agreements by the Committee did not imply any stance or position of individual Members regarding the consistency of that RTA with WTO rules and would be without prejudice to the rights and obligations of Members under the WTO Agreements, as stated in paragraphs 1 and 5 of the Transparency Mechanism Decision. Members had also agreed that the consideration of such agreements in the CRTA would be organized under a separate agenda item.

1.4.  The Agreement had entered into force on 1 September 2019. Türkiye had notified the Agreement to the WTO on 21 December 2021 under Article XXIV:7(a) of the GATT 1994 as an agreement establishing a free trade area for trade in goods (document _WT/REG461/N/1). The text of the Agreement and its Annexes were available on the Parties' official websites and in the WTO RTA database. The Factual Presentation (document _WT/REG461/1) had been distributed and no questions had been raised.

1.5.  The representative of Türkiye delivered the following statement:

1.6.   Mr Chair, we would like to thank the Secretariat for their efforts and cooperation during the preparation process of the Factual Presentation on the Free Trade Agreement between Türkiye and Kosovo.

1.7.  We believe that Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) establishing free trade areas contribute to the development of international trade and provide a favourable environment for businesspeople. Türkiye is a supporter of RTAs with 23 agreements in force. We are working on increasing this number and extending the scope of our existing agreements.

1.8.  Taking this opportunity, we reaffirm our support for a rule-based multilateral trading system under the World Trade Organization, and strengthened WTO rules, disciplines and mechanisms in particular on RTAs.

1.9.  The Factual Presentation already provides detailed information about the structure and provisions of the FTA. Here, I would like to briefly give information about the key aspects of this Agreement.

1.10.  The Türkiye-Kosovo FTA was signed in 2013 and entered into force on 1 September 2019. It aims to liberalize bilateral trade in goods in line with GATT Article XXIV and lays the groundwork for future expansion into services. The FTA currently covers trade in goods, with a provision to expand into services in the future.

1.11.  Under the FTA, customs duties on essentially all industrial products are eliminated. Türkiye had already been granting unilateral duty-free access to Kosovo's industrial goods since 2008, and this concession was consolidated under the FTA. In return, Kosovo agreed to phase out all tariffs on industrial goods imports from Türkiye within a transition period of 9 years from the FTA's entry into force. Accordingly, bilateral trade in industrial goods is fully liberalized under the Agreement (Annex II.2 outlines the duty elimination schedule for industrial products). In the area of agriculture, the FTA provides for significant liberalization on approximately 850 tariff lines (at the 8‑digit HS code level) of agricultural products on each side. These mutual concessions are detailed in Annex II.3 of the Agreement. Türkiye's customs duties on the agreed agricultural imports from Kosovo were eliminated immediately upon the FTA's entry into force. Kosovo, for its part, is progressively eliminating tariffs on its agricultural imports from Türkiye over periods of up to 10 years.

1.12.   Bilateral trade between Türkiye and Kosovo has grown steadily since the FTA came into effect. Last year, in fact, our trade volume increased by 18.5%, from USD 712.6 million in 2023 to USD 843.7 million in 2024, reflecting the positive impact of the Agreement on our commercial relations. We are pleased to see our economic ties deepening each year.

1.13.  Before concluding, I would like to inform the Committee about a recent development regarding the implementation of the FTA. The Parties are working towards adopting a new Joint Committee decision by the end of 2025 to update the Agreement's rules of origin by reference to the revised Pan‑Euro‑Mediterranean Convention. This will modernize the origin protocol of the FTA in line with the latest developments in regional rules of origin.

1.14.   Mr Chair, I would like to once again express our appreciation to the WTO Secretariat for their valuable work in preparing the Factual Presentation, and to our counterparts from Kosovo for their close cooperation and support. Finally, I extend our sincere thanks to the distinguished members of the Committee for their participation and interest.

1.15.  The Chair noted the consideration of the Free Trade Agreement between Türkiye and Kosovo had allowed the Committee to clarify a number of questions and concluded oral discussion of the RTA in accordance with paragraph 11 of the Transparency Mechanism. Any delegations wishing to ask follow‑up questions were invited to forward submissions in writing to the Secretariat by 24 June 2025 and Parties were asked to submit replies in writing by no later than 8 July 2025. In accordance with paragraph 13 of the Transparency Mechanism all written submissions, as well as minutes of the meeting, would be circulated promptly, in all WTO official languages, and made available in the WTO database on RTAs.

1.16.  The Committee took note of the comments made.

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