Elitas made the remarks on the sidelines of a meeting of Turkey's Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, which was held in Istanbul earlier this week.
"We are doing our best to normalize Turkish-Russian relations in the near future. Turkey stands for developing trade relations with Russia and closer ties between the people of the two countries," he said.
When asked about whether Russo-Turkish relations will improve at the end of the day, he remained cautiously optimistic on the matter.
"Our relations with Russia will certainly improve, something that should be fulfilled through the joint efforts of Ankara and Moscow," Elitas said.
The past several days have seen an array of Russian and Turkish officials stressing the necessity of resuscitating bilateral ties.
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, for her part, voiced hope that tensions between Russia and Turkey will not last long, while Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu urged the two countries to bolster what he described as "favorable relations." They were echoed by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, who signaled on Tuesday his country's readiness to resume normal ties with Russia.
Russia's retaliatory measures against Ankara include, in particular, a restriction of the activities of Turkish organizations in Russia, a prohibition on the hiring of Turkish citizens by Russian employers and a ban on certain food imports.
