ISTANBUL, June 26. /TASS/. Turkey believes that Iran will not close the Strait of Hormuz through which a substantial amount of global energy exports passes, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
“The potential closure of the Strait of Hormuz will cause a big problem. We are confident that Iran will not take such a step,” TRT Haber television quoted the Turkish leader as telling reporters upon returning from the NATO summit in The Hague. “The recent escalation served as another reminder of how much the security of energy supplies matters,” Erdogan added.
“Rumors spread two days ago that Iran has allegedly ‘halted gas supplies [to Turkey].’ I immediately discussed the issue with my energy minister who reached out to his Iranian counterpart. Actually, there is no such a situation,” the Turkish president continued. “We even held a conversation with Iranian President [Masoud] Pezeshkian. We don’t even think that a situation may emerge where Iran stops its natural gas exports. We are having no problems at all,” he assured the press.
Turkey is looking to reduce its energy imports and increase energy production to get independent energy-wise, Erdogan explained. “Our final goal is to transform Turkey into an exporter of resources and technology,” he stated.