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Erdogan says gas hub plans discussed with Putin are in the works

According to the President of Turkey, an international trade center will be created in Atasehir for transactions on gas, minerals, and any other materials

ANKARA, September 6. /TASS/. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that problems concerning the establishment of a gas hub, which were discussed during talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi, are now included in the government's work plan.

"We will create an international trade center for gas, minerals, and other materials in Atasehir (an Istanbul district - TASS) <…> Furthermore, plans to establish a gas hub in Thrace were discussed at my meeting with Mr. Putin in Sochi. This project is in the planning stages and is already in the works," he stated.

In October 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed establishing such a hub in Turkey to redirect the lost gas transit flows through the Nord Stream pipeline. Turkey has said that almost everything is ready to start the project in terms of infrastructure, but that legislative amendments are needed. The republic’s parliament made the first decisions on the operations of Turkish oil and gas producer Botas and a number of other suppliers in early April.

At a press conference after talks with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan on September 4, Putin said that Gazprom had handed over to Botas a draft roadmap to implement the gas hub project in Turkey. Establishing a joint working group and coordination of the legal framework are on the agenda, the Russian leader added.