The public agenda in Türkiye has been busy last week.
The decision from Turkish banks to withdraw from the Russian MIR payment system, dropped on the agenda like a bombshell.
The phone conversation between the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, has also found coverage in the public agenda.
The recognition of 24th April as the so-called Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day in the US State of California, has also attracted reactions within the Turkish public opinion.
Turkish banks withdrew from the MIR payment system as a result of American pressures
Turkish banks have suspended the use of MIR Payment System, which eases trade relations between Russia and Türkiye, after intense pressures from the USA.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the cabinet of economy held a meeting on 23rd September to discuss developments regarding the MIR card.
Treasury and Finance Minister Nureddin Nebati, Central Bank Governor Sahap Kavcioglu and three executives from the government banks attended the meeting that took place in Vahdettin Mansion in Istanbul. The decisions taken in the meeting are yet to be announced to the public.
Before the meeting, Erdogan stated: “It would not be right to announce the decisions we are about to take. We will discuss about every issue in that meeting. Of course this is not just about the MIR card. What alternatives do we have? We will discuss these. What we can do. What steps can we take? We will pursue our work focusing on these main points”.
Finance expert Bartu Soral stated that there would be no alternatives to the MIR especially after Visa and MasterCard withdrew from Russia. Soral added that Russians that will come to Türkiye would simply have to resort large sums of cash instead.
Soral recalled the deal between Türkiye and Russia, that was in regard of paying the energy purchases 25% in Russian Rubles, and added: “Where could Türkiye find that amount of Rubles? First source would be a swap agreement. Moreover, the system to Türkiye’s advantage is to exchange Rubles earned from tourism”.
Some important assessments also came from the Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov:
Russia has condemned the “pressures never seen before” by the USA regarding the withdrawing Turkish banks from the Russian payment system MIR.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov targeted the US government and said: “This decision was of course taken under heavy pressures from Washington unseen before”.
Peskov assessed that the “situation is complicated” for the Turkish banks, since they have been subjected to threats of sanctions by the USA for using the Russian payment system MIR.
Calling on Turkish banks, Peskov said: “We should seek new ways to stand against these pressures in order not to hurt our economic and trade cooperation”.
The harshest reaction within Türkiye to the withdrawal from MIR, came from Vatan Party leader Doğu Perinçek.
Perincek made the following statements in regard of this topic:
The suspension of the MIR payment system by government banks, right after private banks had taken the same decision, is the murder of the Turkish economy. It is not only murdering the tourism sector, it is also the killing of agriculture, small businesses and the entire economy. It is committing murder against the consumers.
The consequences of giving up the free trade with Russia due to US control would be severe for everyone living in Türkiye.
Those who bow down to the sanctions against Russia cannot fill the fuel tanks of the tractors of our farmers. They cannot fill cheap gasoline to the trucks, trailers and cars. They cannot provide cheap energy to our industry. They can do nothing but to cope with the natural gas prices. Sanctions against Russia will further deepen our trade deficit and bring down our tourism revenues. The dollar and the euro will rise, and the people get poorer.
Russia has been Türkiye’s first or second trade partner for many years. The MIR decision is dynamiting Türkiye’s exports and tourism. The opportunity to import cheap energy from Russia is being wasted. Wide export opportunities for our vegetable and fruit growers are being missed. The doors are closing to the chance that Istanbul will be considered as a banking and air traffic center between Russia and the world.
The AK Party government is capitulating to the pressure of the United States. In the face of the US Deputy Secretary of the Treasury’s threatening letter, the government cannot stand tall. What is the suspension of the MIR card system used by Russian tourists to spend in Türkiye, if not mandate?
Suspending the MIR system will not prevent repression and will not save the AK Party government. Moreover, new threats will come one after another.
The critical phone conversation between Erdogan and Putin
The diplomatic traffic of the President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been making efforts to broker a peace between the two countries since the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian war, still continues. President Erdogan held a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and asked for another chance to the peace negotiations.
According to the statement made by the Presidential Communications Directorate of Türkiye, the latest developments regarding the Russian-Ukrainian war were evaluated during the meeting.
At the meeting, President Erdogan expressed his satisfaction with the successful conclusion of the Russian-Ukrainian prisoner exchange, which they have been working on for a long time, and the functioning of the Istanbul Agreement, which they developed with the contribution of the UN.
In a statement issued by the Kremlin Press Office regarding the meeting, it was stated that Erdogan conveyed a message of condolence about the terrorist attack on the school in the Russian city of Izhevsk.
The Kremlin also stated that the leaders had exchanged views on energy issues: “A positive assessment was made of the interaction in the energy sector within the framework of the implementation of the contracts for Russia’s supply of natural gas to Türkiye and the joint construction of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant. The Presidents of Russia and Türkiye emphasized the implementation of the agreements reached during their meetings in Sochi and Samarkand”, the statement read.
Mentioning that President Erdogan and Putin had also discussed the grain agreement signed in Istanbul, the Kremlin said: “Gratitude is sent for Türkiye’s contribution to the implementation of the Istanbul agreement on grain exports from Black Sea ports and Russian agricultural products and fertilizer exports. At the same time, attention was drawn to the need to implement this grain agreement in a whole plan of action, including the removal of obstacles to the supply of food and fertilizers from Russia to world markets.”
Stating that the further extension of this mechanism, which will expire in November, is in the common interest, President Erdogan also said that they continue to work on the uninterrupted export of Russian fertilizer and grain products.
President Erdogan said that the steps to reduce tensions are needed to pave the way for more positive developments, and that Russia is expected to take steps to facilitate this process, especially on the issue of the annexing of some regions of Ukraine to Russia.
The so-called “Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day” in the USA
Despite the Perincek -vs.-Switzerland decision (2014) of the European Court of Human Rights, the so-called Armenian Genocide allegations from the Western countries, especially from the United States, continued to attack Türkiye.
Lastly, the US State of California has taken a step on the issue.
The law (Assembly Bill 1801), introduced by Assembly Member Adrin Nazarian, mandates the closing of all community colleges and public schools in California on April 24th of every year. Civil servants will be given paid leave on that day. “The Legislature finds and declares that Genocide Remembrance Day would be a day for all to reflect on past and present genocides, but especially those that have felt the impact of these atrocities and groups that have found refuge in California, including, but not limited to, the Holocaust, Holodomor, and the Genocides of the Armenian, Assyrian, Greek, Cambodian, and Rwandan communities” Nazarian said in a statement. In addition, the legislative text stated “The State Board of Education may adopt a model curriculum guide for use in public schools for work on the Day of Remembrance of the Genocide”, the proposal said.
Members of the State Assembly and State Senate have both houses of the California legislature passed this bill. The bill passed unanimously from the State Assembly on May 26th 2022.
The bill then went to the State Senate and also passed unanimously.
California governor Newsom made the statement after signing the resolution. “I am immensely proud of the richness of diversity and backgrounds represented in our state and understand the importance of wanting to see one’s own experience reflected in state holidays”, Newsom said.
While a voting took place on the so-called genocide law, the Assembly of Turkish-American Associations carried out a veto campaign. The parliament, which is working to prevent the passage of the law, called for a veto on the bill on “Genocide Awareness Day” for the reasons that it would fuel further adversities, harassments and hate crimes, especially among the children in schools.