Turkish exporters are asking the government to simplify money transfers with Russia

Turkish banks have been rejecting payments from Russia since January, so local companies are asking to make an exception for payments for exports to the Russian Federation.

Russia is Turkey’s seventh-largest export market, so exporters say they have been unable to receive payment for their transactions since January. As Ekonomim writes, one of the exporters says that exports have almost stopped, and money transfers have been blocked.

Exporters are asking for Russia to be included in the list of countries with which settlements do not need to be made through banks and must be included in the reporting. This list already includes 33 countries, including the recent additions of Congo, South Sudan, Mali, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Problems with settlements with Russia began after the visit of US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to Turkey on January 5. One of the topics discussed during Blinken’s visit was the Russian-Ukrainian war.