Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on Thursday that Israel will abolish its free trade agreement with Turkey and impose a 100% tariff on imports from Turkey in retaliation for Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's decision to halt exports to Israel. The plan will be submitted to the cabinet for approval.
The proposal includes canceling the preferential tariff rates currently in place under the 1996 Israel-Turkey Free Trade Agreement. The proposal is intended to be temporary, lasting until Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan leaves office.
Smotrich's initiative has sparked strong discontent among trade organizations, which argued that such measures would not resolve conflicts and urged him to leave the handling of the situation to them.
Israel imports goods worth $5.7 billion from Turkey. Two weeks ago, Turkey imposed a ban on the loading and unloading of goods in its ports that are coming for or from Israel "until the end of the war in Gaza."
