Ankara is being pulled over to the American side – Kommersant FM

The US will increase pressure on Turkey. Washington’s goal is to achieve compliance with sanctions against Russia, writes Bloomberg. According to the agency, United States Deputy Treasury Secretary Brian Nelson will visit the republic next week. He must demand that Ankara implement restrictions on Moscow.

This is not the official’s first trip to Turkey. In February, he was in Istanbul and expressed concern about the growing trade cooperation between local businesses and sanctioned companies from Russia. Then Nelson said that if Turkish entrepreneurs did not break ties, they themselves could end up on blacklists.

This time, the topic of discussion may be the aviation industry, suggests Alexey Portansky, a professor at the Higher School of Economics: “Here we are talking about servicing Russian ships, aircraft that enter Turkish ports and land at Turkish airports. If we talk about NATO countries, then, probably, Turkey remains the only one who makes an exception in this sense.

Therefore, Washington warned Ankara that the sanctions that had already been imposed on about 10 Turkish companies could be followed by new ones. The conversation will not be easy, and I believe that the Turkish authorities will be forced to make concessions to some extent. It should be added that Turkey is awaiting the next deliveries of F-16 fighters for its air force and the repair of those that are in service. Therefore, this is another lever of influence on Ankara.”

This is not the first time that American and Turkish officials have discussed sanctions against Russia. Previously, US Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Elizabeth Rosenberg and Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke about the inadmissibility of circumventing restrictions during visits to Turkey. Washington’s dissatisfaction was not only caused by the maintenance of Russian aircraft or the re-export of goods. According to the Financial Times, the West was also not satisfied with the energy partnership between Moscow and Ankara.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on November 25 that Russia and Turkey will soon agree on the creation of a gas hub. In addition, he said, the two countries plan to expand cooperation in the construction of nuclear power plants. Could these plans be affected by the Middle East tours of American politicians? “Kommersant FM” discussed this issue with the General Director of the Russian International Affairs Council Ivan Timofeev:

“This visit, on the one hand, is aimed at dialogue with government agencies, representatives of the Central Bank, and the Ministry of Finance. On the other hand, with representatives of the banking community and private business.

And now they are more important for Americans. Officials will say, yes, we understand everything – where we can, we do not bypass sanctions. And private businesses can do this at their own peril and risk. They explain to him that if he gets involved in circumventing anti-Russian restrictions, he may face either secondary sanctions or criminal prosecution.

This affects business with varying degrees of success. Banks are listening. We remember how last year the Americans announced that they could introduce blocking sanctions against banks that use the Mir system or another in the interests of sanctioned Russian individuals. And then we saw that very quickly credit organizations in Turkey and a number of other friendly countries began to suspend cooperation with Mir.

On the other hand, there are companies in Turkey with a high risk appetite. They will understand that there is a risk of secondary sanctions and even criminal prosecution from the American authorities, but for this they will receive an appropriate price. But still, this is no longer the financial sector, but the supply of electronics and dual-use goods. Big business will not get involved in this.”

Meanwhile, the European Union is thinking about combating sanctions circumvention, including through Turkey, media reports. Brussels plans to ban European importers from reselling certain “key goods” to Russia, such as semiconductors, using companies in third countries. And if counterparties themselves violate the rules, businesses will be required to report this.

The measure is still being discussed. However, some EU members are already calling for easing restrictions, in particular, reducing the list of “key products,” writes Bloomberg. In addition, some diplomats believe that the new requirements will put European companies at a competitive disadvantage.

---

Everything is clear with us – Telegram channel “Kommersant FM”.

Ivan Khorushevsky