Turkey halts trade with Israel, prompting Israeli criticism

Turkey is "freezing" all exports and imports to and from Israel starting today, according to two Turkish officials with knowledge of the matter, cited by Bloomberg.

Turkey has not yet made any official announcements.

Trade between the two states reached 6.8 billion dollars in 2023, of which 76% accounted for Turkish exports, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute.

Turkey had limited exports to Israel since last month due to the war in Gaza.

Israel's first reaction

Israeli Foreign Minister Benny Gantz accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of violating agreements by blocking ports.

"This is the behavior of a dictator, it ignores the interests of the Turkish people and Turkish businessmen, as well as international trade agreements," Foreign Minister Israel Gantz wrote in X.

Ganj said he has directed his foreign ministry staff to work on finding alternatives, with an emphasis on local production and imports from other countries.