Turkish competition law rules are closely modelled after the EU competition law principles. This stems from Decision No. 1/95 of the EU-Turkey Association Council (Decision No. 1/95). There are many Board decisions where the Board refers to and takes into consideration the EU jurisprudence by either taking into account the European Commission's precedents or the EU competition law legislation.
Inter-agency Cooperation
Article 43 of Decision No. 1/95 of the EC–Turkey Association Council (Decision No. 1/95) authorises the Competition Authority to notify and request the European Commission (DG Competition) to apply relevant measures if the Board believes that cartels organised in the territory of the European Union adversely affect competition in Turkey. The provision grants reciprocal rights and obligations to the parties (the EU and Turkey), and thus the European Commission has the authority to request the Board to apply relevant measures to restore competition in relevant markets.
There are also a number of bilateral cooperation agreements between the Competition Authority and the competition agencies in other jurisdictions (eg, Romania, South Korea, Bulgaria, Romania, Portugal, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Russia, Croatia, Austria, and Mongolia) on cartel enforcement matters. The Competition Authority also has close ties with the OECD, UNCTAD, WTO, ICN and the World Bank.
The research department of the Competition Authority makes periodic consultations with relevant domestic and foreign institutions and organisations about the protection of competition in order to assess their results, and submits its recommendations to the Board. As an example, a cooperation protocol was signed on 14 October 2009 between the Turkish Competition Authority and the Turkish Public Procurement Authority in order to procure a healthy competition environment with regard to public tenders by cooperating and sharing information. On 2 November 2011, a cooperation protocol was signed with the Turkish Information and Communication Technologies Authority in order to establish, develop and maintain competition in the electronic communication sector, and on 28 January 2015, a cooperation protocol was signed with the Turkish Energy Market Regulatory Authority in order to establish, develop and maintain a free and healthy competition environment in the energy markets. Informal contacts do not constitute a legal basis for the Turkish Competition Authority's actions.
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