MADRID
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said that Turkish-Spanish relations were becoming more dynamic each year.
Spain is unconditionally supporting Turkey in its EU membership process, added Rajoy who held a joint press conference with Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Madrid on Tuesday.
Rajoy defined Turkey as Spain's "strategic partner with priority", and said that friendly, economic and political relations between Turkey and Spain were becoming more dynamic each year, adding that international cooperation between the two countries were also tightly continuing.
Turkey sees Spain as a close friend
Erdogan also underlined that Turkey saw Spain as a close friend in Europe and Mediterranean basin.
Turkey and Spain have been making a very successful cooperation in recent period, said Erdogan.
Erdogan said that Turkish-Spanish trade volume, which had been 3.5 billion euro in 2003, increased to 8.5 billion euro in 2011.
Spain is the 6th country within EU, and the 8th in the world which Turkey made the most export, said Erdogan.
Noting that Spanish companies increased their export to Turkey 60 percent in the last five years, Erdogan said that Spanish investment in Turkey, which had been 238 million euro in 2003, today exceeded seven billion euro.
The investments focused mainly on insurance, energy and automotive sectors, he added.
