2024-04-09 23:58:20
The Turkish Ministry of Trade said on Tuesday that Turkey will impose restrictions on the export of products from 54 different categories to Israel until a ceasefire is declared in the Gaza Strip, adding that the measures will take effect immediately.
In a statement following Ankara’s announcement that it would take measures after Israel rejected its request to participate in the airdrop operation, the ministry said that the restrictions would include iron and steel products, construction equipment and products, machinery, and others.
According to the text of the decision published by “Turkish Trade,” the prohibited products include: aluminum sections, aluminum wires, paints, copper sections, bars and wires, steel pipes and fittings, and steel wire rods.
In addition to steel containers and tanks, steel bridge parts, steel towers, steel sections, and cement.
The list also includes all building materials made of iron and steel, iron and steel wires, drilling rigs, electrical cables, electrical panels, tiles, and fiber optic cables.
These include rebar, construction machinery, building insulation materials, glass used in construction, chemical compounds, chemical fertilizers, sulfur, mineral oils, marble and metal processing machinery.
The Turkish Ministry of Trade explained that the restrictions on exports will remain in effect “until Tel Aviv declares an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and allows sufficient and continuous aid to be provided to the Palestinians.”
The statement stressed that “Turkey has not sold Israel for a long time any product that could be used for military purposes.”
The decision comes in response to Israel’s refusal to allow Turkey to airdrop aid into Gaza.
In the first comment from the Israeli side, Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz said that Turkey “unilaterally violated” trade agreements with Israel.
He added, “Israel will impose its own trade restrictions on Turkish products in response to Turkish restrictions on exports.”
He also considered that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “is sacrificing Türkiye’s economic interests to support Hamas.”
The Turkish move to restrict the export of 54 products comes after the government came under popular pressure during the past months due to its continuation of trade exchange operations with Israel.
Before the municipal elections, Erdogan’s former ally, the leader of the “Renewed Welfare Party,” Fatih Erbakan, played on this chord.
The matter reached the point where anyone who votes for the “Justice and Development Party” is considered “a supporter of Israel with weapons,” which was demonstrated by a video recording published by accounts close to Erbakan’s party on social media.
Speaking about the AKP’s worst electoral defeat since 2002, Erdogan said last week: “Unfortunately, even regarding an issue like the Gaza crisis, for which we did everything we could and paid the price, we failed to repel political attacks and convince some people.”
He also pointed to other reasons behind the decline in his party’s popularity, including the economic situation, the situation of retirees, and the process of selecting candidates.
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2024-04-09 23:58:20