Türkiye halts supply to Russia after Blinken’s visit – minister

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Türkiye is not selling any more products that could be used in Russia’s war effort, following his meeting with U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken on Monday.

Türkiye will not allow U.S. and European sanctions to be violated in or via Türkiye, as Ankara is taking steps to prevent it, Cavusoglu added.

He further assured that “it is not true that we have exported to Russia products that can be used in the defence industry… we asked the United States to notify (us) if there are any violations on this issue.”

Antony Blinken’s visit comes in the aftermath of two devastating earthquakes hitting Türkiye ; also following a former visit earlier this month by a high-ranked U.S. Treasury official aiming at prompting more cooperation from the Turkish side.

Worth mentioning that the Western nations applied the export controls and sanctions after Moscow’s invasion nearly a year ago. Yet supply channels have remained open from Hong Kong, Türkiye and other trading hubs.