Is the closure of Turkey still relevant?
On March 1, Franz Klintsevich, a member of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security, warned that Turkey was preparing a large-scale military operation in Syria.
For tourism, this means increasing the risk of a Turkish closure for Russians: experts believe that such a move is possible from the Kremlin as pressure on Erdogan.
According to Klintsevich, the entire leadership of the Ministry of Defense of Turkey, headed by Minister Hulusi Akar, came to the border of Turkey and Syria. “An operational headquarters has been established there and a large-scale action is planned. This could escalate into real aggression and war.”
The situation escalated on February 28, when Turkey and Russia-allied Syria actually entered a state of war for the province of Idlib - at least 33 Turkish soldiers and officers killed in the city of Serakib in Idlib, who fell under an airstrike against militants.
What the Turkish military was doing in the heart of the terrorists’ lair is a rhetorical question, the main thing is that Turkey did not disclose their location to the Russian military, which coordinates airstrikes on the militants.
The Turkish parliament even began to discuss the feasibility of an official declaration of war on Syria, but not everyone in Turkey wants this.
This policy harms business, primarily tourism, which is important for both countries. Russians in Turkey occupy the first place in terms of visiting and spending: in 2019, more than 7 million people visited Turkey.
On the other hand, for Russians, Turkey is a socially significant place of rest: to take all willing vacationers when Turkey is closed, the resorts of the Krasnodar Territory and the Crimea will not be able to. And even more so, they will not be able to keep prices at an acceptable level - they will soar up. Against the backdrop of closed Egypt, Turkey remains almost the only accessible foreign destination where Russian tourists can afford a good holiday, without the risk of contracting the coronavirus - there are no infected people in Turkey.
The Turkish media called on the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the country to develop a backup plan to replace the Russian tourist flow with tourists from other countries in case the conflict in Idlib leads to a rupture of relations between Russia and Turkey.
Russian tourists are now calmly reacting to the dive of politicians and buying vouchers to Turkey for early booking promotions.
Source: tourprom