Can Turkish lemons soothe Ankara-Moscow relations?
Turks are wondering why Russia is embargoing everything but lemons and nuts.
In Turkey, when you say “wine,” people think of France, and when you say “vodka,” it is Russia that comes to mind. In Russia, it is Turkey that comes to mind when they think of the lemon — the indispensable mixer. Moreover, the lemon is the natural home cure for the flu, colds and runny noses.
After Turkey shot down the Russian plane, Russia stopped all fresh vegetable and fruit imports from Turkey. However, they did not include lemons and nuts on the list of banned commodities.
Apparently, the Vladimir Putin administration was reluctant to tamper with his people’s vodka pleasure.
Bulent Aymen, president of Turkey’s Mediterranean Exporters Union, said, “Putin did not touch lemon because of vodka.” Aymen said lemon prices in Russia had skyrocketed to $10 per kilogram from $3 because of the drought. “Russians use lemon heavily with vodka in winter. That is why it was excluded from the Russian embargo,” he added.
