Türkiye seeks to extend an American exemption from the sanctions of the purchase of Russian gas

Bloomberg quoted Turkish officials who did not name them that Ankara seeks to extend an American exemption from sanctions that allow it to continue to buy the natural Russian gas necessary for its economy, while Turkey has not explicitly announced the date of its exemption from the sanctions on the “Bank of Gazprom” company in December 2024.

However, Bloomberg officials said that the exemption period is scheduled to end on March 20, that is, specifically a week from now, and that Ankara is working to extend it, and officials have asked not to reveal their identity because the matter is not announced. Turkey imported more than 45% of its gas imports from Russia last year, according to Bloomberg accounts based on data from the National Energy Regulatory Authority, knowing that these supplies were extremely important during the coldest winter than usual, and will remain important in the summer due to the expectation of a decrease in energy generation from the electrical sources.

Bloomberg also attributed the officials as saying that the Minister of the Treasury and Finance, Mohamed Shimashk, is scheduled to have a phone call to US Treasury Secretary Scott Besent this week to request an exemption of Russian gas exemption in order to continue its import from Moscow.

In November, the United States has previously imposed sanctions on the “Gazprom Bank”, a vital energy payment channel, with the aim of reducing Russia’s income from gas sales, but later granted exemptions to major importers of Turkey and Hungary. The Turkish Treasury and Financial Ministry, as well as the Ministry of Energy, declined to comment to Bloomberg on this information, while the US Treasury did not respond immediately to the request for suspension outside the official working hours.