Turkish finance minister criticise European stance on Egypt

Turkey's finance minister, Mehmet Simsek, Wednesday criticised European politicians for refusing to admit that what has taken place in Egypt was a military coup. "I am amazed how Europe is dealing with Egyptian crisis. They cannot call a cat a cat," he told an event organised by the think tank European Policy Centre in Brussels. "It is amazing both for the European parliaments and European politicians in general. If you cannot say that this is outright a military intervention regardless of the pretext. This is a coup and if you cannot even say that. Next time when an European colleague starts lecturing us on this type of stuff we will remind them," he said. Simsek said there are direct and indirect impacts on Turkey's economy from the turmoil in Egypt and Syria. The direct impact is small, he said, and noted that Turkey had a significant trade surplus valued at about USD 4 billion with Egypt. He said that more than 200 Turkish factories with a workforce of over 100, 000 people operate in Alexandria and other industrialised zones in Egypt. Turkey is now also looking after 0.5 million Syrian refugees. "There has been very little international interest and assistance," he complained. Simsek said that the indirect impact on Turkey from the unrest in Egypt and Syria is more important. "Turkey is the largest production base between Italy and China. It is a major economy with a large competitive base. If our neighbourhood is stable, peaceful and democratic, we will benefit the most. Turkey has cultural, lingual and religious affinity with the region," he said "That is the most important factor that we're going to lose. It is not about today's trade. It is about the lost opportunity for the next years," he added. Simsek said one of the main reasons for Turkey's economic progress and prosperity is due to the political stability in the country.