In a speech to members of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Ankara, Erdogan said Turkey has “closed the book on the IMF, not be opened again.”
Turkey’s IMF debt was $23.5 billion when the AKP came into power in 2002. It was paid off in 2013.
“It is out of question for Turkey to cross paths with the IMF. Turkey has closed that chapter forever,” Erdogan insisted.
Turkey is locked in a tariffs dispute with the US over the ongoing detention of US pastor Andrew Brunson, who Turkey holds under house arrest in Izmir on terrorism charges.
To pressure Ankara, Washington imposed tariffs on steel (up 50 percent) and aluminum (up 20 percent).
In response, Ankara raised tariffs on a raft of imported US products, including fruit, rice, alcoholic drinks, tobacco, make-up, plastics, and vehicles by as much as 140 percent.
The US move caused the lira to nosedive against the dollar. The struggling currency has since slightly improved.
Turkey accuses Brunson, who has been held in detention for two years, of fostering ties with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and FETO and of involvement in the attempted coup of 2016. Brunson denies the allegations, and no evidence has been presented to substantiate the claims.
Observers believe Brunson is being held hostage by the Turkish state, which hopes to exchange him for Muhammed Fethullah Gulen – the US-based Turkish cleric accused by Ankara of plotting the 2016 coup.
This is a developing story…
Last updated 4.48 p.m.
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