Turkish fruit, vegetables face total ban in Russia
Russia's agriculture watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor has announced plans to halt the remaining imports of fruit and vegetables from Turkey next week.
“We are considering restrictions on the remaining fruit and vegetable products which have not yet been banned,” said the agency’s deputy head, Yulia Shvabauskene, as quoted by Interfax.
READ MORE: Russia suspects Azerbaijan of re-exporting banned Turkish tomatoes
Rosselkhoznadzor is going to impose ban on imports of products still allowed on the Russian market, including marrows, lemons and grapefruit, due to the systematic violations of sanitary requirements.
Restrictions on the supplies of vegetables, fruits and other goods from Turkey to Russia have been in place since the beginning of the year. Relations between the countries have significantly deteriorated since November 24 last year, when a Turkish fighter jet shot down a Russian warplane in Syria.
Russia’s economic sanctions against Turkey also included a ban on the hiring of Turkish citizens. The embargo could cost the Turkish economy $3.1 billion this year, according to Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek.
READ MORE: Syria to replace Turkey on Russia's fruit & vegetables market
Moscow does not see any political context in the step.
“Rosselkhoznadzor is not engaged in politics, it is engaged in its specific issues,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Sputnik news agency.
