Erdogan Reacts to Sanctions Against Moscow
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reacts to Western sanctions targeting Moscow. According to him, Europe should have expected such a situation.
| Sectors | Gas, Natural Gas |
|---|---|
| Themes | Policy & Geopolitics, Sanctions |
| Companies | Gazprom |
| Countries | Russia, Türkiye, Ukraine |
Erdogan, Turkish president, declares that Europe is reaping what it has sown. Indeed, Europe, in the midst of an energy crisis, is concerned about the recent closure of Nord Stream 1. To this, the Turkish president reacted by pointing out that she had to expect it.
According to Erdogan, Europe is reaping the consequences of its sanctions
Russia recently cut off supplies via Nord Stream 1. The Russian company Gazprom said that the flow will be interrupted for an indefinite period. This would be due to problems that extend the duration of maintenance.
This state of affairs is only the continuation of the progressive reduction of natural gas flows. In fact, the volumes transported via Nord Stream 1 had already been reduced. As a result, the pipeline was only operating at 20% of its total capacity.
In addition, Russia has also cut off or interrupted supplies through its 3 main gas pipelines to the west. Flows that are no longer heading west are being channeled east.
This situation makes Erdogan react. In this sense, he says that it is the sanctions that have pushed V. Putin to retaliate. He adds that Russia is aware of the major asset it has in terms of energy. Thus, the response to Western sanctions has been to block energy supplies to Europe.
The Turkish president also states:
“I think Europe will have serious problems this winter. We don’t have such a problem.”
The country has a special place
Erdogan’s statement refers to Turkey’s current position in this difficult context. The NATO member country has sought to strike a balance between Moscow and Kiev. He blamed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but did not adhere to European Union sanctions.
The position taken by Turkey seems to be the result of several factors. In fact, the country shares a border with Russia and Ukraine.
Erdogan had also pointed out that the application of sanctions would have had a negative impact on the already fragile economy. He added that Turkey would have focused more on the mediation aspect to ease the conflict.
