US issues warning to Türkiye over alleged military exports to Russia

Washington has issued a warning to Türkiye, threatening “consequences” if it does not curtail its exports of U.S. military-linked hardware to Russia.

This hardware is vital to Moscow’s current conflict in Ukraine.

It is not known whether the U.S. has been able to issue similar warnings to its European allies.

It has emerged that dozens of EU-based companies have been selling military hardware to Russia since Russia invaded Ukraine and European countries began imposing sanctions on Russia.

French systems on Russian-made tanks have also drawn a great deal of backlash, yet France still buys liquefied natural gas from Russia and funds Russia’s war. Shipments of Russian liquefied natural gas to France more than doubled in the first half of this year.

US concerns over Turkish exports

Matthew Axelrod, Assistant Commerce Secretary, recently met with Turkish officials and executives in Ankara and Istanbul. He emphasized the need for Türkiye to halt the illicit trade of American-origin chips and other parts critical to Russia’s military operations.

We need Turkey to help us stop the illicit flow of US technology to Russia. We need to see progress, and quickly, by Turkish authorities and industry or we will have no choice but to impose consequences on those that evade our export controls.

Matthew Axelrod

The US is particularly concerned that Türkiye has become a key conduit for Western-made electronics, such as processors, memory cards and amplifiers – which are allegedly ending up in Russian missiles and drones.

Machine tools are another significant area of concern.

Türkiye is not currently among the countries that have imposed sanctions against Russia and continues to communicate with both sides in the war as a mediator.

Countries in the region such as Armenia and the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus have become the centers of this trade from Russia, while Greece helps transport Russia’s natural gas and oil to the world with its existing civilian maritime fleet.

US treasury’s stance

Brian Nelson, U.S. Treasury Under-Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, expressed frustration over Türkiye’s alleged trade in military-linked goods during his visit last year.

The U.S., EU, U.K. and Japan have targeted trade in about 50 categories of civilian products with military applications, crucial for Russia’s war in Ukraine. But still somehow Japanese and South Korean-made CNC machines can still make their way to Russian military factories and build military hardware for Russia.

According to the U.S. Commerce Department, Türkiye is the world’s second-largest source, after China, of U.S.-origin goods sent to Russia.

Call for immediate action

Axelrod urged the Turkish government to “adopt and enforce a ban on the transshipment of U.S.-controlled items to Russia,” labeling the trade as an “urgent problem.”

He accused Moscow of exploiting Türkiye’s trade policy to gain access to U.S. parts.

The U.S. Commerce Department has already added 18 Turkish companies to its “entities list,” requiring American companies to obtain rare licenses to sell sensitive parts to these groups. Axelrod indicated that more companies might be added unless significant progress is made.

Impact of US sanctions

The U.S. Treasury Department has also sanctioned numerous Turkish companies for allegedly supplying Russia’s military-industrial complex.

Türkiye’s alleged exports of high-priority military-linked goods to Russia or intermediaries like Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan have surged since the war began, registering $85 million in the first six months of this year, compared to $27 million in the same period in 2022.

There’s been some recent progress . . . but it’s not enough, because it’s still way too high

US Commerce Department Official