Moscow accuses Turkey of violating WTO rules amid debate on ‘wheat ban’

İstanbul, Mar 23 (DHA) – Russia has accused Turkey of violating WTO regulations on grain after Turkish importers largely ceased purchasing Russian grain even as officials in Ankara declared that no ban had been imposed on the product amid mutual recriminations on trade.
According to Levin, Russia has not assumed similar supportive measures, which is why it now exports grain instead of flour.
But Ankara said Turkey has not banned purchases of grain – mainly wheat, maize and sunflower oil – from Russia, but noted that imports could be halted as Turkish companies choose to avoid buying from Moscow.
Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci reiterated Ankara’s denial of any formal ban, but said the annual $1.83 billion of agricultural imports from Moscow could fall to zero. He gave no specific reason why companies did not want to import from Russia.
Last week, import licenses issued by the Turkish government no longer included Russia in a list of accepted tax-free origins, the sources said, suggesting an import tariff of 130 percent could be applied to supplies from Russia.
Russia imposed trade restrictions on Turkish goods and other sanctions after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet near the Syrian border in November 2015. Despite political normalization and the lifting of some sanctions against Turkey, Russia retains measures against a number of Turkish products.