Türkiye’s bold move to halt trade with Israel reverberates across global media

According to analyses, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faced pressure to halt trade with Israel

The global press closely followed Türkiye’s complete cessation of trade with Israel due to the Gaza conflict.

According to an announcement made by the Ministry of Trade yesterday, trade with Israel has been completely halted. After the restrictions were first reported, Israel’s foreign minister accused Türkiye’s president of acting like a “dictator”.

Trade between the two countries was worth almost $7bn (£5.6bn) last year.

Last month, the Ministry had also imposed restrictions on the sale of 54 product groups to Israel.

‘Relations could deteriorate again’

In the analysis by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), it was reminded that last year, a total of approximately $7 billion worth of trade was conducted between Türkiye and Israel.

The report indicated that Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of acting “like a dictator” in his statement following the ban decision.

The analysis argued that following the October 7 attack, in which both Israel and Türkiye withdrew their diplomats, relations could deteriorate again with the move to ban trade.

‘Erdogan under serious pressure’

Financial Times (FT), one of the leading newspapers in the UK, wrote that Ankara took such a step to pressure Tel Aviv to facilitate aid to Gaza.

The analysis evaluated that “after suffering a major defeat in the local elections in March, Erdoğan faces serious pressure domestically to increase restrictions against Israel.”

It was noted that many candidates in the election campaigns also criticized the Erdoğan government for not taking sufficient steps against Israel in the Gaza war.

‘Erdogan was facing backlash from conservative voters’

The London-based magazine The Economist shared the comment “Religious voters think the President has not been tough enough on the Israel issue” in its article titled “Erdoğan Faces Challenge from Islamists.”

‘Effective move’

The Israeli news site Times of Israel described Türkiye’s trade ban decision as “a very effective move against Jerusalem.”

The analysis highlighted the campaign conducted by the Welfare Party (YRP) against the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in the local elections, and it recalled YRP leader Fatih Erbakan’s statement, “We’re not causing you to lose, it’s the trade with Israel that’s causing you to lose.”

‘Government criticized for double standards’

In a report by the US-based news agency AP, it was indicated that Erdoğan faced pressure from the public to halt trade, stating, “The government was criticized for applying double standards by maintaining trade relations while making heavy accusations against Israel.”

‘Türkiye takes action against genocide in Gaza’

In an analysis by the US-based Palestine Chronicle, which publishes news related to Palestine, it was written that Israel-Türkiye relations, which were damaged due to the Gaza war, would “suffer another blow.”

The report used the phrase “Türkiye took action against the genocide in Gaza by halting trade.”

‘Trade suspended due to Genocide’

The Palestinian National Authority’s news agency, Wafa, shared Turkey’s decision to suspend trade with Israel under the headline “Turkey Suspends Trade with Israel Due to Genocide in Gaza.”

Source: Newsroom