Istanbul, November 26:

Turkey has proposed to Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) member countries a project for the joint manufacture of a passenger plane, a senior Turkish official said. The proposal was made by Turkey’s state-owned TUSAS Aerospace Industries (TAI) at a meeting of the OIC’s economic and trade cooperation committee in Istanbul, said Ahmet Tiktik, undersecretary of the State Planning Organisation. TAI was asked to conduct market research on feasibility of the proposal for a plane able to carry between 40 or 50 people, Tiktik said. The Jeddah-based OIC has 57 members.

Its Turkish chairman called on member states to enhance economic cooperation and work for the creation of a free trade zone ‘in the near future.’ Turkey, whi-ch is strictly secular and is bidding to join the EEU, has recently stepped up efforts to also boost economic and political cooperation with Muslim countries.