Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have confronted U.S. President Donald Trump over their right to independently choose the supplier of gas for their countries.
Erdogan told about it the reporters today. The conversation with Trump reportedly took place during the NATO summit which took place in Brussels on July 11-12, the Turkish TV channel A Haber reported.
According to Erdogan, Trump told those attending the summit that they were all "feeding Russia" and that Germany gives Russia too much money. Erdogan replied that his country imports 50% of its natural gas from Russia, and if it blocks this supply, Turkish citizens will freeze during the winter.
The Turkish leader recalled that Merkel has echoed his concerns, adding that Russian gas fulfills 38% of Germany's gas needs and that she also cannot let her people freeze.
Trump has repeatedly criticized European nations for continuing to stick to Russian gas supplies and suggested that countries like Germany drop the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
