The Turkish authorities will not join sanctions against Russia, as they cannot allow their citizens to freeze without Russian gas
Turkish President Recep Erdogan told Turkish journalists on board the plane returning from the NATO summit.
“In terms of sanctions, we appreciate certain UN lines, but let’s not forget that we cannot put aside our relations with Russia. You know, I explained this a long time ago, because today, if you consider only natural gas, we get about half of the natural gas we consume from Russia. Besides, today we are building our Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant with Russia. We cannot leave all of this behind. When I tell [French President Emmanuel] Macron this, he replies: “You are right.” So it can’t be helped, we have to maintain our sensitivity on this issue. Firstly, I cannot leave my people freezing in winter, and secondly, I cannot completely reset this industry of ours”, – Hurriyet newspaper quoted him as saying on Friday.
According to Erdogan, the republic’s authorities “must protect its citizens.
“We have a country of 85 million people. We are doing all kinds of obligations that fall on us. In addition, we have sent 56 trucks with humanitarian aid for Ukrainians. We are supplying them with food, clothes, medicine. Supplies will increase”, – he added.