Colombia Trade Ministry calls for restricting coal sales to 'Israel'
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Colombia's Trade Ministry took the initiative to call for a restriction on coal exports to "Israel" amid the ongoing war on Gaza.
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Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia, undated (WikiCommons)
Colombia's Trade Ministry has initiated measures to advocate for restrictions on coal sales to "Israel", in a move further isolating the occupation entity in solidarity with the people of Gaza.
The ministry recommended that fuel shipments be limited to a committee that rules on tariffs and foreign trade, according to an internal document examined by Bloomberg and a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
It's crucial to highlight that Israeli relations have soured with Latin American countries this year. However, till now matters have only been followed through on a diplomatic level rather than trade sanctions.
Colombia is "Israel’s" biggest coal supplier, selling around $450 million worth of coal last year.
The Trade Ministry stated that the coal restrictions aim to help end the war and emphasized that they should remain in effect until the war is over.
In a similar context, earlier on Tuesday, Turkey's exports to "Israel" nearly ceased in May after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's administration halted trade until sufficient humanitarian aid reached Gaza.
According to preliminary data from Turkey’s main exporters association, shipments to "Israel" plummeted 99% year-on-year to $4.4 million. The official statistics service, TurkStat, is set to release comprehensive trade data, including imports, later in June.
At the beginning of last month, the Turkish Trade Ministry announced that trade relations with "Israel" would be suspended until Tel Aviv allowed for the "uninterrupted and sufficient flow" of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The decision also comes in response to the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza.
