Turkey will not refuse to buy oil and gas from the aggressor country russia, as the import of russian energy is a commercial decision and a technical necessity for Turkish companies.
Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar stated this, as quoted by Bloomberg.
"Till now, the private sector has been making decisions on this issue. Because these are commercial decisions, decisions of private companies, distributors and refiners. They chose their suppliers and their activities based on their commercial considerations," Bayraktar said.
He added that the country's authorities will not tell private companies where to buy crude oil.
The minister also said that Turkey will not stop importing russian gas. He noted that on the eve of winter, the country must ensure supplies from various sources.
"We have to buy gas from Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan, wherever possible," the minister said.
Bayraktar's words came against the backdrop of a recent statement made by US President Donald Trump during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The American leader said that he would like Ankara to stop buying oil and gas from russia while it continues its war against Ukraine.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, in late September, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in an interview with The Guardian, that Budapest will not refuse to buy russian energy, despite the US call for it.
On September 16, it became known that Japan also rejected the US call to stop importing russian oil and impose duties on India and China.
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