White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said Wednesday that Turkey’s decision to impose retaliatory tariffs against $1 billion worth of U.S. exports was “regrettable,” and hinted that its action could be met with a U.S. response, although she declined to say what that might be.
“The tariffs from Turkey are certainly regrettable and a step in the wrong direction,” Sanders said at the White House. “The tariffs that the United States placed on Turkey were out of national security interests, theirs are out of retaliation.”
“I’m not going to get ahead of anything on what we may or may not do in an effort to respond, but certainly we don’t support Turkey’s decision to retaliate against us protecting our national security interests,” she added.
[Opinion: What the US has to lose in the ongoing dispute with Turkey]
Turkey’s tariffs were a response to U.S. tariffs on about $1 billion worth of steel and aluminum from Turkey. The U.S. imposed similar tariffs on imports from China, and when China retaliated, the U.S. has responded by hitting China harder on trade.
Tensions between the U.S. and Turkey are rising. Aside from the trade dispute, the two countries are also fighting over a U.S. request to release Pastor Andrew Brunson, who has been held in Turkey for nearly two years.
Sanders said even if Brunson were released, the tariffs would stay on because they were imposed for national security reasons. However, the U.S. has sanctioned two Turkish officials for their actions related to Brunson, and she said those would be revisited if Brunson were released.
[More: Turkey: ‘Aggressive’ US sanctions over pastor will be returned in kind ‘without delay’]
