Israel reacts indignantly

Turkey suspends all trade with Israel

Relations between Turkey and Israel continue to deteriorate.

(Bild: Action Press)

According to a report, Turkey has suspended all trade with Israel in view of the Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip. This was reported by the financial service Bloomberg on Thursday, citing two Turkish officials familiar with the matter. 

Israel's Foreign Minister Israel Katz reacted indignantly to the decision. "Erdogan is breaking agreements by blocking ports for Israeli imports and exports," Katz wrote on the X platform.

Both the Turkish Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs initially left inquiries unanswered. The trade ban further exacerbates the already high tensions between the two countries.

Erdogan steps up the pace further
At the beginning of April, Turkey had already imposed export restrictions on certain goods traded with Israel. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had repeatedly sharply criticized the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip and accused Israel of "genocide" against the Palestinians.

With regard to Erdogan, Katz continued: "This is how a dictator behaves, disregarding the interests of the Turkish people and business people." Ankara is also ignoring 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."

Ankara joins genocide lawsuit
On Wednesday, Turkey announced its intention to join the genocide lawsuit filed by South Africa against Israel. The legal details of the application are still being finalized. At the end of December, South Africa took Israel to the International Court of Justice for alleged violations of the Genocide Convention during the Gaza War. In an interim ruling, the UN court ordered Israel to take protective measures to prevent genocide.

Trade between Israel and Turkey was worth 6.8 billion dollars (6.34 billion euros) in 2023, 76 percent of which was accounted for by Turkish exports, Bloomberg further reported, citing the Turkish Statistical Institute.