Erdogan and Putin hold phone call

The Turkish president and his Russian counterpart discussed trade and other “international topics,” the Kremlin has said

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has pledged to increase trade flows between Türkiye and Russia following a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday.

In a statement released after the call, Erdogan’s office said that he and Putin discussed “Türkiye-Russia bilateral relations as well as regional and global issues,” with Erdogan stating that he aims “to further the cooperation between Türkiye and Russia in many areas, particularly by expanding the trade volume” between the two countries.

The Kremlin released a similar statement, confirming that Erdogan and Putin talked about “a number of international topics,” and placed “an emphasis on increasing the effectiveness of trade and economic cooperation.”

Although Türkiye is a member of the US-led NATO bloc and an aspiring member of the EU, Erdogan has adopted a policy of neutrality on the Ukraine conflict. In addition to hosting peace talks in 2022, Türkiye brokered the now-defunct Black Sea Grain Initiative, and has rebuffed US requests to impose economic sanctions on Moscow.

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Türkiye is the world’s third-largest buyer of Russian crude oil and Moscow is its most valuable import partner, according to data compiled by the World Bank.

Ankara has reportedly given in to some of Washington’s demands, however, such as blocking the export of certain ‘dual use’ goods to Russia in recent months, according to Financial Times. Over multiple rounds of sanctions, the US has blacklisted around 20 Turkish firms since last year for allegedly supplying such goods to Russian counterparts with links to the country’s defense industry.

The term ‘dual-use’ refers to parts, tools, and components with both civilian and military applications.

Meanwhile, Türkiye continues to export weapons systems to Ukraine – including drones and small arms. Speaking to Turkish newspaper Hurriyet earlier this month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that these weapons “are used by the Ukrainian armed forces to kill Russian military personnel and civilians.”

“This situation cannot but cause surprise, given the Turkish government’s statements that it is ready to provide mediation,” Lavrov added.

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Erdogan and Putin have met on several occasions since Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. Most recently, the pair spoke at the BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan in October. Ankara announced in September that it had formally applied to become a full-fledged BRICS member, making it the first NATO state to do so.

Lavrov told Hurriyet that Russia would support Türkiye’s application, and backs expanding ties between the BRICS group and countries “who share a focus on strengthening multilateral principles, pursue a sovereign foreign policy, and do not join unilateral sanctions.”