Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on Feb. 1, 2022. (Credit: Dalati and Nohra)
BEIRUT — Turkey has lifted its ban on importing scrap metal from Lebanon while Iraq signals openness to imports from Lebanon
Here's what we know:
• Last Tuesday Prime Minister Najib Mikati and eight ministers made an official visit to Ankara to discuss numerous issues. There have been few public details about what the discussions entailed and whether progress was made. Economy Minister Amin Salam however indicated that increasing trade was one item of discussion. In a statement issued Sunday, Salam called the ban lifting a success.
• The Turkish ban on Lebanese scrap metal was put in place in 2018.
• Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister Abbas Hajj Hassan arrived in Baghdad ahead of a regional conference of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. He was welcomed at the airport by Iraqi Minister Mohammad Karim al-Khafaji, who said his country is open to economic cooperation with Lebanon and that “Iraqi markets will be open to Lebanese products.”