Turkey Will Not Join US Sanctions Against Iran - Foreign Minister

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. Photo: Getty

"We will not support any sanctions. Yes, of course [we will continue trade] with Iran, with Russia, with others. Turkey is a sovereign independent country. If this is UN sanctions — we will join. Otherwise, we don’t," Cavusoglu said, when asked if Turkey planned to join US restrictions targeting Iranian oil sector.

The Foreign Ministers remarks follow President Recep Tayyip Erdogan telling Reuters earlier on Wednesday that Turkey would continue to purchase natural gas from Iran despite US sanctions, as Sputnik News reported. 

The US re-imposed sanctions against Iran in May after President Trump withdrew the US from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or Iran Nuclear Deal. Sanctions had been eased in 2015 in compliance with the agreement. Trump said at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday that "additional sanctions will resume November 5, and more will follow." Those sanctions are expected to target Iran's oil sector.

But before they go into effect, the US will make certain that the oil market is "well supplied," Brian Hook, the US Special Envoy to Iran and head of the State Department's Iran Action Group, said on Tuesday.