Relations between the two countries are already tense. Now, according to a report, Turkey is halting trade with Israel. The reaction follows promptly.
Turkey has suspended all trade with Israel in light of Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip, according to a report. This was reported by the financial service Bloomberg, citing two Turkish officials familiar with the matter. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz reacted angrily to the decision. “Erdogan is breaking agreements by blocking ports for Israeli imports and exports,” Katz wrote on the platform X, formerly Twitter. Both the Turkish trade and foreign ministries initially left inquiries unanswered.
With the trade stop, the already strong tensions between the two countries are further escalating. At the beginning of April, Turkey had already imposed export restrictions on certain goods in trade with Israel.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly sharply criticized the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip and accused Israel of “genocide” against the Palestinians.
Katz further wrote with regard to Erdogan: “This is how a dictator behaves, disregarding the interests of the Turkish people and business people.” Ankara also ignores international trade agreements. Israel wants to create alternatives to trade with Turkey with the help of local production and imports from other countries. “Israel will emerge from this with a strong and bold economy.”
Türkiye wants to join genocide lawsuit
On Wednesday, Turkey announced that it wanted to join South Africa’s genocide lawsuit against Israel. The legal details of the application will still be finalized. At the end of December, South Africa sued Israel before the International Court of Justice for alleged violations of the Genocide Convention committed in the Gaza war. The UN court ruled in an interim ruling that Israel must take protective measures to prevent genocide.
Israel has repeatedly rejected allegations of genocide. The country invokes the right to self-defense after the massacres by the Islamist Hamas and other extremist Palestinian organizations on October 7, 2023.
Trade between Israel and Turkey was worth $6.8 billion in 2023, of which 76 percent were Turkish exports, Bloomberg reported, citing the Turkish Statistical Office.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
