16 August 2018•Update: 16 August 2018
By Hassan Isilow
JOHANNESBURG
A South African analyst has condemned U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent remarks targeting Turkey’s economy.
"If Trump thinks he is going to succeed in bringing down Turkey’s economy, he should think again. He is bound to fail," Ibrahim Vawda, a researcher with the Johannesburg based Media Review Network (MRN), told Anadolu Agency on Thursday.
On August 10, Trump doubled U.S. tariffs on Turkish aluminum imports from 20 to 50 percent. Turkey warned that it would retaliate.
Vawda described Trump’s attack on Turkey as an attack on the Muslim world, as Turkey is viewed as an example of democracy among Muslim nations.
"We should not look at the Turkish question in isolation but in reality, it affects the entire Muslim world. First, it was anti-Iran and now it’s Turkey,” he said.
Also, the leader of Mozambique’s Muslim Community, Sheikh Ameenu Deen, said, "President Erdogan is doing a great job in running his country and must not be intimidated by Trump."
He said Trump is a populist leader who attacks Muslims to win the elections ahead in his country. "He will not succeed in destroying Turkey’s economy," the cleric said.
On Aug. 1 relations between Ankara and Washington nosedived when the U.S. imposed sanctions on two Turkish Cabinet ministers after Turkey refused to release an American pastor who faces terrorism-related charges in Turkey.
In response to Trump's last week's move, Turkey raised tariffs on several U.S.-made goods, including alcohol and tobacco products and vehicles.
