By Bahattin Gonultas
ANKARA
It is impossible for Turkey to carry out any sort of oil trade with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or the ISIL terror group, Customs and Trade Minister Nurettin Canikli has said.
In an interview with Turkish broadcaster A Haber channel Monday, Canikli talked about oil trading with the ISIL group which now controls large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, including oil fields.
The Turkish minister said any such deal was impossible.
"Anyone who is related to the Islamic State of Iraq cannot enter the Turkish customs as well as not perform any trade activity there. Surely, he or she will be arrested and then taken away,” he said.
Canikli said during the last 15 days, some claims regarding such deals were brought up, but they were all without any concrete example.
"If you have some evidence in your hand, then let us know, so that we can evaluate it and let the world know about it," he said.
“Not a single gram of petrol that belongs to the Islamic State of Iraq can pass through the Turkish customs,” the minister said. He added that there were some elements who were spreading disinformation and deliberately trying to create such a perception.
The ISIL is said to be in control of oil facilities in Syria and sells crude oil and oil-based products to fund its terror activities, according to several media reports.
www.aa.com.tr/en
