Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says his country will boycott U.S.-made electronic goods amid a diplomatic spat that has helped trigger a Turkish currency crisis.
The announcement came in his address to a symposium organized by the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) on the 17th foundation anniversary of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party.
Showing no signs of backing down in a standoff with the U.S., Erdoğan suggested that Turkey would stop procuring U.S.-made iPhones and buy Korean Samsung or Turkish-made Vestel instead.
He said: "If they have the iPhone, there is Samsung elsewhere. We have Vestel."
Erdoğan also renewed a call for Turks to convert their dollars into the Turkish lira, to help strengthen the currency.
Erdoğan said Turkey has been taking necessary measures regarding the economy, amid a slide in the lira currency exacerbated by the dispute with Washington, but it was important to keep a firm political stance.
Switching to foreign currency would mean giving in to the enemy, Erdoğan concluded.
"They do not refrain from using economy as a weapon against us [Turkey], as they [also] tried in the areas of diplomacy, military, or efforts for social and political instability," he added.
Turkey and the U.S. are currently experiencing rocky relations following Washington's imposition of sanctions on Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu and Justice Minister Abdülhamit Gül for not releasing American Pastor Andrew Brunson, who faces terrorism charges in Turkey.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday ramped up his attack on Turkey by doubling U.S. tariffs on Turkish aluminum and steel imports to 20 percent and 50 percent, respectively.
