Selçuk Ünal, Ambassador of Türkiye to China Photo: Courtesy of the Embassy of the Republic of Türkiye in China

Selçuk Ünal, Ambassador of Türkiye to China, told the Global Times in an exclusive interview on Thursday that through the "two sessions," foreign diplomats have witnessed the continuation of significant decisions, and China's people-centered reforms included in the 15 th Five-Year Plan are also compatible with Türkiye's goals.

From his point of view, the 15th Five-Year Plan's encouragement for openness, transparency, stability and market access for foreign investors is important. "These reforms have potential for more Turkish businesses' entry into the Chinese market. There is indeed great potential for increasing Türkiye's exports to China on a win-win basis," the ambassador said. 

In recent years, Turkish-Chinese relations flourished significantly under the joint strategic vision and guidance of our leaders. There is great room for improvement in investments, energy, high-tech, and agriculture cooperation, he added. 

China's "high-standard opening-up" policies offer significant opportunities, particularly for countries with strong production and logistics capacity. Türkiye also stands out as a major country in these areas, the ambassador shared. 

"Technological self-reliance" is particularly mentioned in the Plan. Türkiye is also increasing its efforts in technological independence, digitalization and AI capabilities.

"There is potential in mutually beneficial collaboration in enhancing research and development, digital economy, artificial intelligence (AI), electric vehicles (EVs), chip and battery technologies. These collaborations will immensely contribute to both countries' technological advancements and economic growth," said Ünal.

China's people-centered reforms included in the Plan are also compatible with Türkiye's future goals. 

The ambassador said that as the 15th Five-Year Plan highlights increasing quality of life and green development, there are opportunities for Türkiye-China cooperation in modernization of agriculture, smart cities, food security, renewable and nuclear energy, and the green technologies. 

"We expect the 15th Five-Year Plan to unlock the significant potential that we believe our bilateral relations deserve. There is room for cooperation with a win-win approach in infrastructure and railway projects, new technologies, battery and energy storage systems, agriculture, renewable and nuclear energy," he said. 

The ambassador also sees the alignment of the two countries in green development. "We believe the 15th Five-Year Plan can offer an important platform for cooperation and investment, particularly in sectors such as high technology and green energy," he said. 

Türkiye is determined to be a key manufacturing hub for high-quality production and green technologies, such as solar panels and wind turbines. Production of such green technologies in Türkiye will certainly contribute to China's upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan goals, the ambassador added. 

Chinese goals elaborated in the 15th Five-Year Plan offer the potential to provide collective momentum for the development and prosperity of all countries. As Türkiye, our expectation is the realization of the full potential our bilateral relations offer, the ambassador told the Global Times. 

"In this context, we hope that expanding domestic demand and high-level opening-up will function as important tools for a balanced, fair and sustainable bilateral trade on a win-win basis," said Ünal.

As 2026 unfolds, the international landscape is marked by intensifying geopolitical competition and recurring security challenges. 

Ongoing international armed conflicts necessitate coordinated efforts of the two countries as responsible members of the international community. Türkiye and China are capable of individually or jointly contributing to the promotion of peace and stability in their regions and beyond, said the ambassador.

Recent conflicts in the Middle East demonstrated that there are again unjust aggression. Like China, Türkiye stands ready to contribute in the de-escalation of the situation and return to diplomacy. In this context, we reiterate our readiness to provide support for mediation to all sides, he said. 

At the outset of this new five-year period, the diplomat shared his outlook for potential priority breakthroughs in cooperation with China. 

Türkiye and China indeed have significant potential for cooperation, which is not limited to traditional industries, but also includes new energy, electric vehicles, digital economy, technological innovation, green transition. "With immense manufacturing capacity, sound infrastructure and qualified labor force, Türkiye offers unique opportunities for Chinese businesses," said Ünal.

Moreover, Türkiye as the host of the upcoming COP31 from November 9 to 20, in Antalya, is an important renewable energy producer in Europe. "Considering China's ambitious role on renewable energy, we are ready to work more on solar, wind and hydro power sectors," said the ambassador.

To advance our digitalization and AI capabilities, Türkiye is willing to strengthen cooperation for enhancing research and development and further discover potential cooperation.  

"We attach particular importance to people-to-people exchanges, which serves as the foundation of mutual cooperation and remains a vital source of understanding between our countries," Ünal added.