Turkey suspends trade with Israel

To protest against the war in Gaza, Turkey suspends all its imports and exports to Israel.

This is a new stage in the deterioration of relations between Ankara and Tel Aviv. At the beginning of April, Turkey had already suspended exports of steel, iron and aluminum which usually supply the Israeli arms industry.

She then mentioned the refusal of the Jewish state to authorize Turkey to participate in air delivery operations of humanitarian aid in the Palestinian enclave. This time, all negotiations are suspended. On Thursday, May 2, Turkish ports were closed to imports and exports to Israel.

The Turkish Ministry of Commerce has issued a very clear statement: these measures will be applied.strictly“, as long as the government of Benjamin Netanyahu does not allow it”uninterrupted and sufficient flows of humanitarian aid to Gaza“. The text speaks of a “human tragedy” which is worsening in the Palestinian territories.

An economic impact also for Turkey

From an economic point of view, the freeze on trade will especially penalize the Israeli defense industry. But a priori, oil which leaves Azerbaijan and reaches Israel via the Turkish port of Ceyhan, on the Mediterranean, is not concerned. More than a third of Israel’s oil needs still pass through this port. In the end, the direct loss for Israel is estimated at $2.4 billion. For Turkey it’s three times more! Recep Tayyip Erdogan Shooting itself in the foot at a time when its economy is struggling with inflation officially at 65% last year. The figure for this year is expected today.

The head of Israeli diplomacy is quite radical towards the Turkish government. “This is the behavior of a dictator, he said, in defiance of the interests of the people, Turkish entrepreneurs and international trade agreements“. He asked his services to set up new channels of trade with other countries.

This decision comes as Ankara announced this week that it was joining South Africa’s legal action, which accuses Israeli leaders of “genocide” before the International Court of Justice.

It is an additional voice in the concert of protests which increasingly isolates Benyamin Netanyahu on the international scene. Ankara now hopes that Arab countries will follow suit.