Minister Bolat to CHP: 'You are the ones who are most friendly with Israel'
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat responded to criticisms regarding Turkey's trade relations with Israel at the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) Planning and Budget Committee, stating, "You are engaging in fake hostility toward Israel here; do not engage in political exploitation."
İHA
The TBMM Planning and Budget Committee convened under the chairmanship of AKP Samsun Deputy Mehmet Muş to discuss the 2025 budget for the Ministry of Trade and its affiliated institutions.
At the meeting, Trade Minister Ömer Bolat’s presentation regarding commercial relations between Turkey and Israel drew reactions from opposition deputies.
Minister Bolat stated that Turkey is a leader in efforts to stop the attacks carried out by Israel in the Middle East, to ensure a ceasefire, and to provide aid to Palestine, adding, "Turkey is the country that provides the most aid to Palestine in the world, having delivered a total of 85,000 tons of aid to Gaza and the West Bank under difficult conditions" he said.
STATEMENT ON TRADE WITH PALESTINE
Bolat stated that a total trade volume of 9.5 billion dollars was reached with Palestine and Israel in 2022, adding, "Palestine's total imports were around 7.7 billion dollars. A large portion of this was conducted through Israel. The 2 billion dollars of trade from Turkey is also recorded in Israeli records. For this reason, our trade with Palestine did not appear in Palestine's own records." he said.
CLAIM THAT JET FUEL IS BEING SOLD TO ISRAEL IS BASELESS
Bolat noted that despite the export restrictions Turkey imposed on Israel on April 9, "Jet fuel is being sold to Israel" allegations were being made. Stating that they responded to this claim with documents, Bolat said, "Not a single drop of jet fuel was sold to Israel in 2024. Only the fuel purchased at the airport for flights by Israeli tour companies was recorded as an export, which led to these baseless allegations."
TRADE WITH ISRAEL HAS BEEN STOPPED
Reminding that they completely halted trade with Israel as of May 2, Bolat emphasized that Turkey is the only country to have implemented trade sanctions against Israel by taking this decision. "Our President has made efforts at international summits for Israel to implement a ceasefire, and Turkey has displayed a clear stance on this matter" said Bolat, adding that no customs declarations for Israel have been registered since May 2.
Bolat, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbasstated that he thanked Turkey for its trade embargo against Israel. Bolat declared, "Abbas said to the deputies in the TBMM on August 16, 'We are grateful to Turkey; you sacrificed 9.5 billion dollars in trade for Palestine.'"
REACTION FROM MINISTER BOLAT TO CHP DEPUTIES
Responding to the reactions of CHP deputies, Bolat reminded them that trade with Israel has been halted since May 2 and stated, "You are engaging in fake hostility toward Israel here; do not engage in political exploitation. You are the ones who are most friendly with Israel."