Russia extends economic sanctions against Turkey

Russia will prohibit Turkish companies from construction, tourism, the hotel business and services for state and municipal needs from Jan. 1 onwards, the Russian government said on Wednesday in a resolution.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday had signed an order to extend Russian economic sanctions against Turkey. Sanctions were first imposed after Nov. 24, when Turkish forces shot down a Russian fighter jet that had violated Turkish airspace despite repeated warnings.

Monday's order implements sanctions that were included in the initial sanctions imposed on Turkey on Nov. 28, but which had not yet been implemented. The new order also imposed a ban on the operations of several organizations under the jurisdiction of Turkey as well as a limitation of Turkish organizations' activities in Russia.

Accordingly, under the terms of sanctions against Turkey, most Turkish companies operating in Russia may no longer hire Turkish citizens; only 53 Turkish companies will be able to employ Turkish nationals after Jan. 1, 2016. The names of these companies were not announced on Monday, but were made public on Wednesday.

The list of 53 companies has been released on the Russian government website, and included firms based in the republics of Bashkortostan, Crimea, Tatarstan, Krasnodar Territory, Vladimir, Kaluga, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara and Tyumen regions, Moscow, St Petersburg and Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Area.

According to Russian government, the 53 Turkish companies are involved in the following sectors: Construction, automobiles, construction materials, polymeric tubes and fittings, plumbing equipment and flooring.

Agricultural prices remarkably rose in Russia

Due to the economic sanctions applied by Russia, the export of various vegetables, fruits and meat products will be completely banned as of Jan. 1, 2016, bringing into effect the set of sanctions promised earlier in the year.

Since Turkey downed the Russian aircraft violating Turkish air space, Russia has implemented various sanctions toward Turkey including fresh vegetables and fruits. But by trying to pressure the Turkish economy with sanctions, Russia is also suffering from inflation as the price per kilogram of tomatoes reached 560 rubles, or TL 23.5 ($8), according to a story by Yeni Şafak daily.

A photo taken in a supermarket showed that Russians are purchasing tomatoes one at a time. A 260-gram tomato is sold for TL 6, which means the Russians are under pressure. In the first 10 months of 2015, Turkey exported 300,000 tons of tomato, 255,000 tons of citrus fruits, 20,000 tons of white meat and 36,000 tons of salt to Russia.

The economic sanctions imposed on Turkey have caused an increase in prices in Russian shops, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said at the beginning of December. Following Turkey's shooting down of a Russian military jet over the Turkey-Syria border last month, Russia imposed a range of unilateral sanctions on Turkey, including a ban on food imports, an end to visa-free travel and calls for tourists not to visit Turkey. Regarding the matter, Medvedev also said "The resolutions against Turkey are not sanctions but defense reactions of the state."