SHOTLIST: LONDON, UK (JULY 8, 2025) (ANADOLU - ACCESS ALL) 1. VARIOUS OF OFFICIALS SIGNING DEALS AND PARTICIPANTS POSING FOR CAMERAS AT UK-TÜRKİYE ISLAMIC FINANCE FORUM 2. SPEECHES BEING DELIVERED 3. TÜRKIYE’S TREASURY AND FINANCE MINISTER MEHMET SIMSEK DELIVERING SPEECH (English)LONDON, UK - JULY 8: The disarmament of the terrorist PKK will bring "massive economic gains" to the region, Türkiye’s Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Tuesday as he outlined his country's ambitious Islamic finance strategy and macroeconomic reform agenda during a high-profile visit to London. Speaking at the UK-Türkiye Islamic Finance Forum in London, Simsek emphasized Türkiye’s reorientation toward the West, saying: “We are re-anchoring to the West … and we rely on the UK in making sure that we stay close.” “... We are pulling out of geopolitical recessions of the last decade.” He emphasized the continued importance of bilateral relations with the UK. “When the UK was in the EU, it was one of our greatest support. But even outside of EU, we rely on the UK in making sure that we stay close and we work very closely together with United States, European Union and the UK.” He also underlined the country's unique geopolitical role as a mediator. “Türkiye is your best partner in terms of mediating conflicts and building peace — whether you talk about Russia-Ukraine, Armenia-Azerbaijan, or stabilizing Syria.” About the disbanding and disarmament of the terrorist group PKK, Simsek said "it's happening" and the development would unlock “massive economic gains” and support “a more inclusive and democratic society.” “Finally, when you think about a Turkish story, I just want to remind you that there is something real big happening. It may not be capturing headlines here, but after almost 50 years of terrorism against Türkiye ... the PKK has decided to disband itself and disarm and it's happening. This suggests massive economic gains, more inclusive and democratic society, and has prospects for regional integration," he said. "We can read the table, and of course, you will get new engines of growth in Türkiye, because demographics is extremely favorable in east and southeastern Türkiye. So this is the story. This is why you should consider it." - Strengthening economic fundamentals Simsek also used his London engagements to promote Türkiye's macroeconomic reforms, highlighting recent progress on inflation, fiscal discipline, and external rebalancing. “Our biggest challenge is inflation. Disinflation is underway. We hope that inflation will fall to single digits by 2027… Headline inflation was 72% last year. It’s currently 35% — still very high, but it’s coming down.” The minister said that the current account deficit is narrowing, and Türkiye even recorded a surplus when excluding gold and energy imports. Despite the fiscal burden caused by the 2023 earthquake, Simsek affirmed Türkiye's commitment to financial discipline. “Debt-to-GDP ratio was about 25% last year," he said. - Bolstering resilience and green transition Simsek said Türkiye's net foreign exchange reserves had risen by nearly $89 billion, and foreign-exchange-protected deposits — a major contingent liability — have dropped by $130 billion. "This is like increasing reserves by $130 billion," he said, compared to August 2023. "Reserve adequacy has been achieved using international definitions." Türkiye is also prioritizing its green transformation, he said. “Close to 50% of electricity has come from renewables in the last 12 months.” He detailed investments in hyperscale data centers, fiber capacity, and space infrastructure, while unveiling support programs for 30 high-tech and 284 mid-to-high-tech products, backed by long-term, favorable loans. Simsek made a strong pitch to international investors, describing Türkiye as a “large, dynamic and reforming economy.” “It’s already a $1.4 trillion economy ... with a population of nearly 90 million — including refugees.” He underscored the country’s long-term growth performance. “Over the last 20-25 years, Türkiye has outperformed many emerging markets, especially excluding China and India,” he said. With nearly 900,000 university graduates and 400,000 vocational school graduates each year, Simsek said Türkiye offers a skilled and youthful workforce. “This is not a typical emerging market with lots of deficiencies. Over the past 20 years, we’ve addressed many of those deficiencies.” He also stressed the country's strength in manufacturing, saying: “Türkiye, relative to its per capita GDP, is one of the largest manufacturing hubs. We are at par with Asian tigers.” - UK-Türkiye collaboration in Islamic finance Simsek also touched on Islamic finance, describing it as “structurally better equipped to address uncertainty and ambiguity,” citing its foundational principles that “avoid interest, excessive uncertainty, and speculative transactions.” He emphasized the resilience of Islamic finance during times of global instability. “Islamic finance tends to be, relative to its conventional peers, more resilient ... because it provides you more stability, liquidity as a part of risk sharing. This is really the essence in terms of your profit and loss arrangements,” the finance minister said. While the global share of Islamic finance remains modest — accounting for roughly 1% of global financial assets — Simsek noted its growth trajectory. “The state of Islamic finance in global financial assets has gone up by 11 folds since the year 2000," he said. In contrast to the global average, Islamic finance plays a more substantial role in Türkiye’s financial ecosystem, accounting for “roughly about 8% of banking assets, 12% of capital markets and about five and a half percent of the insurance market.” - Deepening UK–Türkiye ties Simsek also called for expanded UK-Türkiye cooperation, particularly in services and reconstruction. “Why don’t we do it together? UK architects, Turkish contractors. Türkiye is second only to China in global contracting.” Highlighting the country’s $115 billion in services exports and a leading gaming ecosystem — “second to London” with over 850 startups — he pointed to synergy opportunities in tourism, medical services, and digital technologies.