Turkey, Ukraine begin passport-free travel

A deal between Turkey and Ukraine allowing their citizens to travel to each other's country without passports entered into force early June 1, said Andrii Sybiha, Kyiv's ambassador in Ankara.      

"Both countries will benefit from this agreement," Sybiha told reporters at Ankara's Esenboğa Airport after Ukrainian citizens entered the country by showing only their national ID cards for the first time.      
 
"Last year, more than 1 million tourists came from Ukraine to Turkey. More than 200,000 Turkish tourists traveled to Ukraine," he said. "Thanks to this agreement, we expect a 30 percent increase in these numbers this year."        

Olga Vdovenko, a Ukrainian reporter, said she had no problem using her ID card at the passport control gate.        
"I'm happy to be part of the first group that came to Turkey with an identity card," Vdovenko told reporters.        
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Groysman, agreed on March 14 to allow their citizens to travel to each other's country without passports.        

Under the deal, citizens of both countries will only need to present their national ID cards for stays of up to 90 days.