Head of Saudi Chambers urges end to business with Turkish companies

RIYADH — The head of the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce, Ajlan Al-Ajlan, on Wednesday called on all Saudis to stop doing business with Turkish companies in the Kingdom, reiterating his call for a boycott of “everything Turkish.”

On Oct. 3, Al-Ajlan called for a boycott of “everything Turkish” including imports, investment, and tourism. Al-Ajlan said it is “the responsibility of every Saudi to act”.

“I say it with certainty and clarity: No investment, no import, no tourism,” said the head of Saudi Chamber of Commerce Ajlan Al-Ajlan in a tweet.

“We, as citizens and businessmen, will not have any dealings with everything Turkish. Even the Turkish companies operating in the Kingdom, I call not to deal with them,” he added.

Al-Aljan said it was the “least response” Saudis can do amid “continued Turkish hostility and insult to our leadership and our country.”

“Boycotting everything Turkish, whether on the level of imports, investment or tourism, is the responsibility of every Saudi — trader and consumer — in response to the continued hostility of the Turkish government against our leadership, our country, and our citizens,” said Al-Ajlan tweeted.

The Turkish lira has taken a nosedive, descending to a record low last week at over 7.7 versus the US dollar. The lira is one of the world’s worst-performing currencies this year, down 22 percent, according to Reuters.

The impact of the coronavirus combined with a currency crisis that began in 2018 has led to a sharp recession, with gross foreign exchange reserves at the central bank falling by nearly half this year.

The call for a boycott comes after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier this month that some countries in the Arabian Gulf were targeting Turkey, and questioned the existence of these countries.

“It should not be forgotten that the countries in question did not exist yesterday, and probably will not exist tomorrow; however, we will continue to keep our flag flying in this region forever,” said Erdogan on Oct. 1 in addressing Turkey's General Assembly. — SG