Turkey fights back against economic siege
ANKARA: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his country is under an economic “siege” that has nothing to do with its economic indicators.
Addressing Turkish ambassadors in the capital, Ankara, Erdogan said yesterday that Turkey would overcome the “attack” on its economy. He insisted the economy was still strong and the currency would soon settle “at the most reasonable level”.
In an apparent reference to the US, Erdogan said: “The bullies of the global system cannot roughly, shamelessly encroach on our gains that were paid for by blood”.
His comments came after authorities launched investigations into hundreds of social media accounts for alleged reports they claimed were helping the currency’s plunge.
Erdogan said there was an “economic terror” being waged on social media, adding that “traitors” would be punished.
Turkey’s foreign minister says the US won’t achieve its aims by exerting pressure and imposing sanctions on Turkey.
Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlut Cavusolgu yesterday called on the US to “remain loyal to ties based on traditional friendship and the Nato alliance” with Turkey.
Turkey has been hit by financial turmoil, with the Turkish lira plunging over deepening concerns about the government’s economic policies and a diplomatic spat with the US.
Angered by the continued detention of an American pastor, the US government imposed sanctions on two cabinet ministers and threatened more. It also doubled tariffs of steel and aluminum imports.
Cavusoglu said: “We support diplomacy and negotiations but it is not possible for us to accept impositions.”
Turkey’s Interior Ministry says it will take legal action against hundreds of social media accounts that it says are provoking a drop in the lira. The ministry yesterday that it initiated legal investigations against 346 social media accounts “which posted content provoking the dollar exchange rate”.
Turkey was hit by a financial shock wave last week as the lira nosedived over concerns about the government’s economic policies and the trade and diplomatic dispute with the US.
Multiple institutions yesterday announced similar warnings against those responsible for the crisis.
The Istanbul Public Prosecutor’s office announced it had begun investigating “those who had taken actions which threatened economic stability”. The Capital Markets Board of Turkey issued a similar warning to those who spread “lies, false or misleading information, news or analysis”.
Turkey’s Central Bank has announced a series of measures to help banks manage their liquidity, after the country’s finance chief said the government had readied an “action plan” to ease market concerns that led to a slump in the value of Turkish currency.
The bank released a statement yesterday saying it would “provide all the liquidity the banks need”. The currency tumbled to a record low of around 7.20 lira against the dollar late on Sunday after Erdogan warned of drastic measures if businesses withdraw foreign currency from banks, recovering to 6.61.