Germany to resume arms shipments to Turkey
The German government said on Friday it would resume
arms shipments to Turkey following a partial halt due to Turkey's recent
military intervention in northern Syria.
The move was announced by the German Ministry of
Economy and Technology in reply to a query by the opposition Left Party in this
regard, according to Germany's dpa news agency.
The German government has given the light to four
army deals worth 3.9 million euro (USD 4.20 million) to Turkey, the agency
said, adding that the deals have nothing to do with arms used in Syria.
Berlin decided in November to embargo arms shipments
to Turkey owing to the latter's military operation in northern Syria.
Berlin's weapons sales to Ankara have reached their
highest level in 14 years.
Germany sent €250.4 million ($277 million) worth of
weapons to Turkey in the first eight months of 2019, according to information
cited by German press agency dpa.
That's already higher than any annual amount since
2005 — even without including the last four months of the year.
The data seen by dpa was released by the German
Economy Ministry at the request of the opposition Left party.
Weapons exports to Ankara have been thrown under the
spotlight since Turkish forces invaded northern Syria last week.
