Congress dangles Turkey trade deal as carrot to Trump’s stick
Lawmakers are floating a free trade agreement with Turkey as the president doubles steel and aluminum tariffs on Ankara for its ongoing detention of a US pastor.
The Donald Trump administration’s heavy-handed approach with Turkey in its bid to secure the release of a detained US pastor has prompted Congress to recalibrate its approach to the wayward NATO ally.
While lawmakers in both parties have steadily ratcheted up the pressure on Ankara in recent months, the president’s brash decision to target Turkey’s economy for its detention of Andrew Brunson appears to have rattled some of them. Even Republicans who favor the president’s retaliatory tariffs are now floating the possibility of a free trade agreement with Ankara as a carrot to offset Trump’s big stick.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told Al-Monitor this week that he supports the president’s announcement of 50% tariffs on Turkish steel and 20% on aluminum, despite his stated skepticism of an initial round of tariffs on Turkey and other US trade partners. Unprompted, he then went on to sing the praises of a trade deal, an idea that has been floating around at least since trade talks with the European Union were the order of the day back in 2013.
“I hope that what we’re passing on the Senate floor is a trade agreement with Turkey,” he said after hinting that Congress could tee up further retaliatory measures next year.
