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All tagged Turkey
◢ A federal appeals court granted a temporary halt in the U.S. prosecution of Turkish lender Halkbank over sanctions violation charges while it weighs other requests by the bank. Halkbank had previously sought to pursue a dismissal of the case without entering a plea on the charges.
◢ U.S. prosecutors filed criminal charges against Turkey’s Halkbank, accusing it of fraud, money laundering and violating U.S. sanctions against Iran, in a case that Turkish President Recep Erdogan had pressed both President Donald Trump and President Barack Obama to dismiss.
◢ Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed Ankara would continue to purchase oil and natural gas from Iran despite US sanctions in comments published on Friday. "It is impossible for us to cancel relations with Iran with regards to oil and natural gas. We will continue to buy our natural gas from there," Erdogan told Turkish reporters.
◢ Iran said it sold an oil cargo on board a contested tanker sailing the Mediterranean Sea but didn’t know where the vessel was going amid U.S. efforts to block delivery of the crude. The Adrian Darya 1, the tanker that the U.S. sought to seize in Gibraltar last week, was sailing more than halfway into the Mediterranean Sea on Monday without declaring any destination.
◢ Azerbaijan’s state oil company is turning to Russia to supply a new $6.3 billion refinery it built in Turkey because shipments from one of its preferred suppliers—Iran—are off the table due to U.S. sanctions. “If there were no restrictions, we would buy Iranian crude,” he said, adding that the refinery can purchase oil from anywhere “as long as our model supports it,” although in practice Azerbaijan’s own light crude isn’t really suitable.
◢ Ankara stopped importing oil from Iran at the beginning of May out of "respect" for American sanctions despite disagreeing with them, a Turkish official said Wednesday. "As a strategic ally" of the United States, "we respect" the sanctions, said the official, who asked to remain anonymous, during Turkish Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yavuz Selim Kiran's visit to Washington.
◢ Turkey is seeking ways to buy more oil from Iraq, already a major supplier of crude to the Middle East’s biggest economy, as the U.S. looks to squeeze exports from Iran, according to two people familiar with the matter. Turkey could consider oil imports from Iraq’s southern port of Basra and may also try to secure more shipments via an existing twin pipeline that runs to the Turkish Mediterranean terminal of Ceyhan.
◢ The US decision to end sanctions waivers for purchases of Iranian oil later this week will backfire by angering Washington's allies, Tehran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Sunday. Zarif said US policy is designed to make life hard for the Iranian people so they will "take action" against the Tehran government.
◢ Turkey is loath to buy more oil from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as the U.S. looks to squeeze exports from Iran, currently the third-largest supplier of crude to the Middle East’s biggest economy. “Iranian oil isn’t cheap but there is a big difference” with the price of Saudi and U.A.E crude, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said at a reception in Ankara.
◢ Turkey has warned Washington against its new sanctions on Iran, saying isolating the Islamic Republic is "dangerous.” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Tuesday. Washington this week imposed a second set of sanctions on Iran that aim to isolate the country's banking sector and slash its oil exports. Eight countries including Turkey have received a US waiver to continue importing Iranian oil.
◢ Turkey will be among eight countries allowed by the United States to continue importing Iranian oil, Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said on Friday. "We know Turkey is among the countries that will be given an exemption but we do not have the details," the minister said, quoted by state-run news agency Anadolu,
◢ The US administration likely will enable some countries to continue importing oil from Iran in the short term, despite Washington's maximum pressure campaign against Tehran, White House national security adviser John Bolton said today. The State Department is expected to provide such exemptions before the full brunt of US sanctions pressure begins on 5 November, even though the scope of waivers is yet undetermined.
◢ Turkish police detained Tuesday over 200 people in a major nationwide crackdown on illicit money transfers to individuals of Iranian-origin living in the United States. An Istanbul court issued arrest warrants for a total of 417 suspects and have so far rounded up 216 in a nationwide operation carried out in 40 cities, the official Anadolu news agency reported.
◢ Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has cancelled a visit to Iran, his press office said Sunday, as the premier came under strong Iranian criticism over his stand on renewed US sanctions against Tehran. Abadi will still go ahead with a planned visit to Turkey on Tuesday but has scrapped the Iran leg of the trip "because of his busy schedule,” his office said.
◢ The Turkish economy minister on Friday said the United States withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal was an "opportunity" for Turkey, insisting there would be no-let up in trade with Tehran. "I see it like this, this is an opportunity for Turkey," Nihat Zeybekci told state news agency Anadolu, adding: "I will continue to trade with Iran."
