Turkey Aims to Hold Constructive Tariff Talks with U.S.

(MENAFN) Turkey's Trade Minister, Omer Bolat, announced that the country would engage in tariff negotiations with the United States in a cooperative and mutually respectful manner. “The first contacts on this issue have already been made, and will be held at the ministerial level in the coming days,” Bolat shared during economic meetings in Giresun, Turkey, on Friday.

Bolat expressed concerns about the significant disruption caused by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policies and the retaliatory measures taken by other countries, describing them as creating a huge “dust cloud” in the global economy.

He emphasized, "We think that we both do not deserve and do not expect 10% tariff. But at this point, we will conduct our negotiations with the US with a mutual understanding, in a positive environment, in a constructive way."

Highlighting the importance of global trade relations, Bolat stressed that the impact of these developments on other countries and on Turkey’s trade with them was just as crucial as the relationship between Turkey and the U.S.

"This section is at least as important as Türkiye-US trade relations, and we are making preparations at this point. In this sense, we will not allow Türkiye to become a warehouse where goods will be unloaded, especially by rival countries, we are determined in this regard,” he noted.

He further stated, "We will use all the powers given to us by world trade rules. In fact, it is a very difficult time for the World Trade Organization because unilateral decisions have caused serious damage to the multilateral rule-based system in the world. We hope that in terms of global growth and global trade, a compromise will be reached between countries without the cost of this uncertainty being too high, and that trade will continue to be the engine of world growth.”

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