After Türkiye halted trade with Israel, its exports to Palestine increased, Mohammed al-Amour, the Palestinian minister of national economy, said on Sunday, citing the historical relations between the two and pointing to a specific mechanism for regulating trade as they have asked Turkish authorities to exempt the Palestinian territories from Türkiye’s decision to ban trade with Israel.
“After Türkiye banned exports to Israel, this trade was limited only to Palestine, and thus there was an increase in Türkiye’s exports to Palestine. Because some of our imports from Türkiye were made from the Israeli market and through Israeli traders,” he told Anadolu Agency (AA).
Al-Amour made these remarks while attending the 40th Ministerial Session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) in Istanbul.
Expressing gratitude for the support of the Turkish people, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the Turkish government, he thanked them for their longstanding solidarity with the Palestinian people, especially during this critical phase, as Palestinians face a brutal war in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
“Their fraternal stance and support has had a positive impact on the spirit of the Palestinian people in all regions, and their ongoing support has had a great impression in mitigating this war against our people,” the minister said.
He also expressed appreciation for Türkiye’s efforts to exert international pressure on Israel to stop the cruel war.
“In fact, the trade relationship between Palestine and Türkiye is historical and long-lasting. There was a relationship of importing most of the goods needed by the Palestinian people, either directly through Palestinian merchants or through other companies. Due to the geographical reality and the fact that Palestine is still under occupation, we used and still use Israeli ports.”
‘Palestine exempted from trade ban at our request’
The minister noted that after the war on Gaza, the Turkish government suspended trade relations with the Israeli government per President Erdogan’s decision to deter the Israeli government and pressure it to stop the war.
Türkiye in May announced the decision to suspend all imports and exports to Israel, citing the country’s ongoing military action in Gaza, and vowed to continue to impose the measures until the Israeli government allows the flow of humanitarian aid to the region.
Recalling that the decision was made on May 2, al-Amur said: “We reviewed the situation in terms of mechanisms to ensure that the Palestinian market is not deprived of Turkish goods. As a result of studies on this issue, we agreed on a specific mechanism for regulating the trade relationship and asked the Turkish government to exempt the Palestinian territories from Türkiye’s decision to ban trade with Israel.”
“We agreed on a mechanism to control this process and ensure that Turkish goods that are not covered by the Turkish export ban to the Palestinian market are subject to a specific regulation in the Palestinian law and within the mechanisms approved by the Palestinian Ministry of National Economy.”
Al-Amour noted that more detailed work is underway to ensure that goods exported from Türkiye reach only the Palestinian market and said the parties agreed on these mechanisms during their meeting with Trade Minister Ömer Bolat on June 8.
Erdoğan in a speech on Monday also recalled the trade ban implemented on Israel, saying: “First, we completely stopped commercial transactions with Israel in 54 items and then in all items.”
“Like this, we sacrificed approximately $9.5 billion in trade volume,” he said while addressing the COMCEC event in Istanbul.
“We are doing our best to ensure that genocide perpetrators are held accountable under international law,” he further said, adding that with this understanding, “We have applied to intervene in the genocide case filed against Israel at the International Court of Justice.”
‘We need Türkiye’s products’
Moreover, al-Amour said they need the support of Arabs and Muslims to provide the elements that will ensure the survival of the country’s economy in the shadow of the war that Palestine is exposed to, noting, “We have been trading with Türkiye for a long time and we need Türkiye’s basic products for the survival of our people.”
He also thanked Minister Bolat for his continuous support of exports to Palestine through the ministry’s implementations and instructions.
He said that during today’s meeting, a decision was made to increase trade and export quotas between the two countries, adding that the export of Palestinian dates to Türkiye supports Palestinian producers who are at war.
Moreover, the minister said that trade between Palestine and Türkiye used to take place through Israel before the war.
“However, after Türkiye banned exports to Israel, this trade was limited to Palestine, which led to an increase in Turkish exports to Palestine. Because some of our imports from Türkiye were made from the Israeli market and through Israeli traders. After that was banned, all the transactions in the Palestinian market started to be done through Palestinian traders, and so the figures increased. Therefore, there has been a noticeable increase in trade relations between Türkiye and Palestine.”
Al-Amour noted that they had the opportunity to discuss all the details thoroughly with Bolat, confirmed the new mechanisms implemented and discussed the deterrence of these mechanisms so that Turkish products reach only Palestinian consumers in the Palestinian market.
‘Strict procedures’
Al-Amour said that Turkish goods are now controlled by a mechanism implemented with the consensus and agreement between the Palestinian Ministry of National Economy and the Turkish Ministry of Trade, and explained, “These products reach the Palestinian market within the framework of strict procedures.”
Stressing that there is an export code in the commercial tradition, he said: “Before Türkiye’s decision to ban exports to Israel, there were codes of 624 for Israel and 625 for Palestinians. Some of our imports were made with the Israeli code. After the measures taken by Türkiye, the Israeli code was stopped and all Turkish exports to Palestine were made only through the Palestinian code. We have taken the issue under control with this mechanism. We also have internal procedures in the Ministry of Economy regarding Palestinian importers. The primary and ultimate goal of these procedures is to ensure that the goods coming from Türkiye through the Palestinian trader reach the Palestinian territories for consumption. This is the purpose of the procedures.”
‘Baseless claims serve Israeli government’
The minister said they aim to increase economic relations between Türkiye and Palestine.
“If Allah allows, this unfair war against our people will stop and a positive environment will be created to intensify and deepen this relationship with Türkiye. We are currently in the process of establishing the Jenin Industrial Zone, a joint industrial zone between Türkiye and Palestine. The establishment of this industrial zone was interrupted in the past, but we have laid new foundations to bring it to a stage of completion as soon as possible and to see the joint Palestinian-Turkish industry together,” he said.
He noted that the horizon of mutual economic cooperation between Türkiye and Palestine will grow even more in the coming period.
“There are great investment opportunities in Palestine, and we expect Turkish businessmen to invest in Palestine. When this unfair war ends and political horizons are seen, if Allah allows, there will be great cooperation between Turkish and Palestinian businessmen under the auspices of the governments of both countries.”
Al-Amour also said that baseless allegations were put forward against the Turkish government and concluded his words by saying: “These only serve the Israeli government and support the Israeli war against our people.”
