The Turkish side has raised the issue of making an exception to the sanctions against Gazprombank during contacts with the United States, Hürriyet reported, citing sources.

The issue, according to the sources, was discussed during contacts with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who was in Ankara on Friday. The issue “was raised during meetings (with Blinken) in Turkey,” and “the necessary requests were handed over,” TASS reported, citing Turkish media.

It is reported that the US side, in turn, noted that “it is aware of the requests and is evaluating”.

Earlier, the head of the Turkish Energy Ministry, Alparslan Bayraktar, said that the sanctions imposed by the United States on Gazprombank have a negative impact on Turkey, and the Foreign Ministry of the Republic is negotiating to resolve the situation with payment for natural gas imported from Russia. He added that Turkey receives 40 percent of its gas from Russia and not being able to pay for it would hit the republic hard. He said Ankara “wants the U.S. to make an exception for Russian natural gas.”