Erdogan slams EU sanctions for gas pipeline halt
Did the EU expect the Nord Stream pipeline to function properly despite the sanction packages it continuously implements against Russia?
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Reuters)
On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pointed fingers at Europe's sanctions against Russia as the reason behind their energy crisis. Although Erdogan has maintained cordial relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he has been attempting to stay neutral in the conflict while supplying Ukraine with Turkish weapons and combat drones.
Before leaving for a 3-nation trip through the Balkans, he expressed to reporters that EU nations were "harvesting what they sowed" as a result of the imposition of economic restrictions on Russia, adding, "Europe's attitude towards Mr. Putin, its sanctions, brought Mr. Putin - willingly or not - to the point of saying: 'If you do this, I will do that'. He is using all his means and weapons. Natural gas, unfortunately, is one of them."
In June, Turkey announced it would not be joining the West in enforcing sanctions against Russia.
On Monday, Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov blamed sanctions imposed on Russia for its halt of gas deliveries to Germany via the Nord Stream pipeline. Russia accounted for approximately half of Turkey's own natural gas purchases last year, with Turkey vowing to gradually pay for Russian imports with rubles at a summit between the Turkish and Russian leaders in Sochi earlier this month.
Turkey's payment of Russian gas in rubles, avoiding the dollar, will protect the Turkish economy from its diminishing hard currency reserves.
Analysts believe the deal will guarantee Russia's continued supply of gas to Turkey through the TurkStream pipeline running under the Black Sea, however, Erdogan disclosed that he did not expect Turkey to experience any energy deficits this year. "I think Europe will have serious issues this winter, we do not have such a situation," he said.
Global energy price surges caused by Russian supply interruptions themselves caused by the draconian EU sanctions on the country contributed to the economic crisis in Turkey that has witnessed annual inflation skyrocket to 80% and the lira plunge in value.
Turkish officials so far have brushed off the inflation impacts, calling the price gains transitory and blaming the war in Ukraine for causing the global increase in food and commodity costs. Nevertheless, Turkey has the world’s deepest negative interest rates when adjusted for inflation, and with the lira down approximately 27% against the dollar this year, Turkey has become the worst performer in emerging markets.
