The Turkish government has halted the supply of Western-made goods to Russia that could be used for weapons production, following pressure from the United States. Turkey, which has not joined Western sanctions against Russia, made the decision after the U.S. threatened consequences for Turkey’s support of the Russian defense industry.
Turkish exporters are now prohibited from supplying items on a list of 50 “high priority” goods identified by the U.S., EU, UK, and Japan as critical to Russia’s military industry. These products include advanced electronics, such as processors, memory cards, control systems, machine tools, and other components necessary for weapons production.
In August 2024, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce Matthew Axelrod met with Turkish officials and top executives in Ankara and Istanbul to urge them to stop advanced American technology from reaching Russia. Axelrod warned that failure to block such supplies could result in “unpleasant consequences” for Turkey.
The supply of Western-made products through Turkey has significantly decreased after the U.S. announced in December 2023 that it would impose secondary sanctions on foreign banks involved in transactions related to sanctioned goods. In response, Turkish banks began refusing to process such transactions.
Before the war in Ukraine, monthly exports of high-priority goods from Turkey to Russia amounted to roughly $3 million. By December 2022, this figure had soared to $37.6 million, according to Turkish statistics. However, following the announcement of U.S. secondary sanctions, exports dropped to $26.5 million and further decreased to just $4.5 million by July 2024.
This development underscores the importance of increasing sanctions pressure on Russia to fully cut off its access to critical military components. While restrictions have reduced the supply of key goods, loopholes still exist, and further efforts are needed to strengthen sanctions enforcement. Only by intensifying these measures can the international community effectively limit Russia’s ability to sustain its military aggression in Ukraine.
