AFP :
Turkey on Friday threatened to respond in kind if Washington imposed further sanctions over the detention of an American pastor which has sparked a diplomatic standoff and battered the Turkish currency.
A Turkish court on Friday turned down another appeal to free the pastor in the third such rejection, his lawyer said. As Ankara sought to reassure markets after the lira went into a tailspin over the deepening spat, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin warned more sanctions would be on the way until Andrew Brunson was released. Last week, US President Donald Trump said he had doubled the tariffs on aluminium and steel tariffs from Turkey, prompting Ankara to sharply hike tariffs on several US products.
On Friday, Turkey’s Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan said to expect more of the same.
“We’ve already responded based on the World Trade Organization rules and will continue to do so,” state-run Anadolu news agency quoted him as saying.
The nearly two-year detention of Brunson, who is being held on terror charges, has soured relations between the two NATO allies and sent the lira tumbling.
The lira, which earlier this week traded at well over seven to the dollar, rebounded slightly over the last three days but on Friday it lost over five percent of its value around 1250 GMT.
By closing time, it had fallen to 6.03 against the
greenback after touching 6.3 at one point.
Amidst the currency’s sharp decline, the S&P and Moody’s ratings agencies each downgraded Turkey’s debt a notch, and S&P projected the country would face a recession next year.
On Thursday, Trump said Turkey had “taken advantage of the United States for many years” and referred to Brunson as a “great patriot” who was being held “hostage”.
Turkey on Friday threatened to respond in kind if Washington imposed further sanctions over the detention of an American pastor which has sparked a diplomatic standoff and battered the Turkish currency.
A Turkish court on Friday turned down another appeal to free the pastor in the third such rejection, his lawyer said. As Ankara sought to reassure markets after the lira went into a tailspin over the deepening spat, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin warned more sanctions would be on the way until Andrew Brunson was released. Last week, US President Donald Trump said he had doubled the tariffs on aluminium and steel tariffs from Turkey, prompting Ankara to sharply hike tariffs on several US products.
On Friday, Turkey’s Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan said to expect more of the same.
“We’ve already responded based on the World Trade Organization rules and will continue to do so,” state-run Anadolu news agency quoted him as saying.
The nearly two-year detention of Brunson, who is being held on terror charges, has soured relations between the two NATO allies and sent the lira tumbling.
The lira, which earlier this week traded at well over seven to the dollar, rebounded slightly over the last three days but on Friday it lost over five percent of its value around 1250 GMT.
By closing time, it had fallen to 6.03 against the
greenback after touching 6.3 at one point.
Amidst the currency’s sharp decline, the S&P and Moody’s ratings agencies each downgraded Turkey’s debt a notch, and S&P projected the country would face a recession next year.
On Thursday, Trump said Turkey had “taken advantage of the United States for many years” and referred to Brunson as a “great patriot” who was being held “hostage”.
