Turkey is in talks with the United States and Russia in an attempt to secure a US sanctions waiver so it can continue paying Gazprombank for Russian natural gas imports, Reuters reported, citing Turkish authorities.
Last week the United States imposed new sanctions on Russia’s Gazprombank as President Joe Biden steps up actions to punish Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine before he leaves office in January.
Turkey imports almost all its gas needs, and Russia is the top supplier, providing more than 50 percent of its pipeline imports.
Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar referred to a previous waiver granted to Ankara when Washington earlier sanctioned Iran, saying Turkey needs something similar when it comes to Gazprombank in order to secure its supply.
“These sanctions will affect Turkey. We cannot pay, if we cannot pay we cannot buy the goods. The foreign ministry is in talks,” Bayraktar told reporters late on Monday.
Separately, a Turkish official said that representatives from the Turkish and Russian foreign, trade and finance ministries as well as central banks met on Monday to discuss the US move and its impact on bilateral energy trade.
“We discussed with the Russian delegation what can be done to prevent Turkey from being subject to sanctions during this process and what the effects of this will be,” the official said, requesting anonymity since the discussions were private.
The official added that Turkey began talks with US counterparts before the Gazprombank sanctions were announced, since Washington usually first announces the move then grants exemptions. “They are working on this issue,” he said.