COUNTRY REPORTTURKEY


Holding steady


Political decisions and situations can have a huge impact on logistics – and being located at a crossroads for global trade can make that impact particularly acute. Turkey had remained aloof in recent times, but that is no longer the case, reports Megan Ramsay.


“A


cting as a bridge connecting continents sounds pretty cool and definitely has many geographical, political,


economical, socio-cultural advantages,” observed Vanessa Medini, board member at Medden Shipping. However, the deteriorating geopolitical environment is making it increasingly difficult to conduct day-to-day operations. “Delivering cargo to the Middle East, especially to Iraq and Syria nowadays, is like trying to cross a minefield without stepping on a mine. “CMR insurance does not cover any


damages that may occur in war zones and insurance companies do not offer coverage, so current projects get suspended, new ones do not get signed as nobody wants to invest, cargo on the way has to get stored at warehouses until things get back to normal, production stops, debts cannot be paid, companies file for bankruptcy, people lose their jobs and there is nothing left to transport at the end.” According to Emre Eldener, chief


executive of Turkey headquartered forwarder Kita Logistics, Syria is a major problem, not only for the whole logistics sector, in effect “closing the bridge between Turkey and the Middle East. This kind of unstable situation right next to us does not help the investment climate. Once all is finished and finally peace comes to Syria, I


124 January/February 2017


Once all is finished and finally peace comes to Syria, I expect the Turks will be the first ones to take part in rebuilding Syria. – Emre Eldener, Kita Logistics


expect the Turks will be the first ones to take part in rebuilding Syria,” he said. Medini noted that Turkish ports are a


great alternative to Bandar Abbas for cargo bound for the Middle East and the CIS. However, with Iranian sanctions being lifted in January, the amount of transit cargo from Mersin is expected to fall dramatically. Road transportation, on the other hand, is expected to rise as Turkish companies are eager to extend their business relationship


with Iran in the near future. It is not just the Middle East that proves


problematic, she pointed out. Around 32 percent of the coaster ships going back and forth between Russia and the Black Sea are Turkish owned. Approximately 2,400 Russian flagged ships call at Turkey each year, and about 7.2 million tonnes of cargo is handled. There was tension with Russia after events on the Syrian border in November 2015. Medini explained: “25 Turkish flagged


ships were kept under arrest in Novorossiysk. Port state control and Customs authorities complicated procedures for ships trying to berth or sail from Russian


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