Turkey’s foreign trade minister told textile sector representatives last week that although former Turkish governments ignored or disparaged research activities, the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, attaches high importance to the issue.

Speaking at the “III International Research and Development Project Brokerage” summit organized by the Uludağ Textile Exporters Association, or UTİB, in the northwestern province of Bursa on Thursday, State Minister Zafer Çağlayan said the textile sector was “strategically important” for Turkey as it constitutes 20 percent of the country’s total exports.

Çağlayan said: “[The government] is ready to support you whenever you need. This support might be three or four times more than the current help.”

Some 1,700 companies in Europe are on the edge of being closed or acquired, the minister said, adding that the government was working on new tax and insurance regulations to support Turkish companies who want to buy foreign companies.

Former Turkish governments long ignored research and development activities, he said. “Turkey has to double today’s level of innovation and R&D. We aim to raise the share of R&D to some 2 percent of the country’s Gross National Product.”