Türkiye not exporting to Russia any goods that could be used in defense industry - Çavuşoğlu

This was discussed during a joint press conference with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, said Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Ukrinform's own correspondent reports.

"Türkiye does not participate in sanctions. We do not participate in unilateral sanctions. Of course, we implement the resolutions adopted by the UN. At the meeting, we also talked about how we can cooperate in some areas. We have made it clear from the very start, that we will not allow US and EU sanctions to be circumvented through Türkiye, and we aren’t allowing this," Çavuşoğlu said.

According to the minister, the volume of bilateral trade between Türkiye and the Russian Federation has increased, but mostly due to the rise in the cost of energy imported from Russia, while there is no ongoing export to Russia of products that can be used in the defense industry, so any reports claiming the opposite do not correspond to reality.

"Our bilateral trade with Russia has expanded, but more than 60% is the share of gas and energy that we buy from Russia. Unfortunately, because of the war, the price of gas we pay has tripled. Therefore, the numbers also increased. Our exports of food and some goods have increased. It is also true, but it is not true that we’re exporting to Russia products that can be used in the defense industry," said the minister.

Çavuşoğlu also reaffirmed Türkiye's openness and appealed to partners, in particular the U.S. and the EU, to inform them of any violations recorded.

As Ukrinform reported, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during his visit to Ankara that Washington appreciates Türkiye’s role in supporting the territorial integrity of Ukraine and in working within the "Grain Corridor" initiative, and considers the application of the Montreux Convention important for the protection of the Black Sea and Ukraine’s littoral.