Turkey Halts Trade with Israel, Demands Increased Flow of Aid into Gaza
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Turkey has halted exports and imports to and from Israel, the Turkish Ministry of Trade said, citing the “worsening humanitarian tragedy” in the Gaza Strip.
“Export and import transactions related to Israel have been stopped, covering all products,” the ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
“Turkey will strictly and decisively implement these new measures until the Israeli Government allows an uninterrupted and sufficient flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza,” it added, Al Jazeera reported.
The announcement came after the Israeli regime’s foreign minister said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was breaking agreements by blocking ports from handling Israeli imports and exports.
Katz said he instructed the ministry of foreign affairs to work to create alternatives for trade with Turkey, focusing on local production and imports from other countries.
The two countries had a trade volume of $6.8 billion in 2023.
Turkey last month imposed trade restrictions on the Zionist regime over what it said was Israel’s refusal to allow Ankara to take part in airdrops of aid for Gaza and for Israel’s war on the enclave.
Asked about Turkey’s ongoing trade with Israel despite the harsh rhetoric from Ankara, Erdogan said last month that Turkey no longer continued “intense trade” with Israel, adding, “That is done.”
