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Mustafa Sonmez is a Turkish economist and writer. He has worked as an economic commentator and editor for more than 30 years and authored some 30 books on the Turkish economy, media and the Kurdish question. On Twitter: @mustfsnmz
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![People shop at a food market in Istanbul, Turkey, February 11, 2019. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1FDE55C390](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/04/RTX6M9VF.jpg/RTX6M9VF.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=IzII-qky)
![Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan poses with students during a graduation ceremony in Ankara, Turkey, June 11, 2015. President Erdogan on Thursday urged the country's political parties to work quickly to form a new government, saying egos should be left aside and that history would judge anyone who left Turkey in limbo. In his first public appearance since Sunday's parliamentary election, Erdogan said no political development should be allowed to threaten Turkey's gains. He said he would do his part in find](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/04/RTX1G1YN.jpg/RTX1G1YN.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=rs9pTW71)
![Skyscrapers are seen in the business and financial district of Levent, which comprises of leading banks' and companies' headquarters, in Istanbul, Turkey, March 29, 2019. Picture taken March 29, 2019. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1956F82330](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/04/RTS2FVFW.jpg/RTS2FVFW.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=UF66EWFY)
![An election banner with the pictures of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and AK Party mayoral candidate Binali Yildirim is seen over the Galata bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, March 27, 2019. The slogan on the banner reads that: "Istanbul is a love story for us". REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1F13574C10](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/RTS2F4XS.jpg/RTS2F4XS.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=EDH8496R)
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![A truck is driven off a Turkish freighter, docked at Haifa port in northern Israel February 17, 2014. Three years after Syria plunged into violence, Israel is reaping an unlikely economic benefit. Exports from Turkey have begun to flow through Israel and across the Sheikh Hussein Bridge to Jordan and a few Arab neighbours. The trade is growing enough to encourage long-held Israeli hopes that the Jewish state can become a commercial gateway to the Arab world. Picture taken February 17, 2014. To match Insight](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/03/RTR3WKGX.jpg/RTR3WKGX.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=OrKTNiuL)
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![A worker drives in the Pendore vineyard run by Kavaklidere wines during the harvest in the western Turkish village of Kemaliye in the Aegean region, August 28, 2009. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY SOCIETY) - GM1E58T02GR01](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/02/RTR276YZ.jpg/RTR276YZ.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=PQrVIyxA)
![Renault cars produced in Turkey and awaiting export throughout Europe, are checked by workers in the port of Koper October 14, 2013. Automotive industry association ACEA said October 16, 2013, that new car registrations in Europe climbed 5.5 percent to 1.19 million vehicles in September, only the third month a gain was recorded in the past two years. But within the European Union, the level of demand was the second lowest on record for the month of September since it began tabulating results for the 27 memb](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/01/RTX14DKH.jpg/RTX14DKH.jpg?h=1d34674f&itok=1SYhVxRm)
![FIFA President Gianni Infantino (L) holds a news conference with Turkish Football Federation (TFF) President Yildirim Demiroren in Istanbul, Turkey, 23, 2017. REUTERS/Osman Orsal - RC117EEE72F0](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/01/RTX3JR0M.jpg/RTX3JR0M.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=wFaKPbAJ)
Mustafa Sonmez is a Turkish economist and writer. He has worked as an economic commentator and editor for more than 30 years and authored some 30 books on the Turkish economy, media and the Kurdish question. On Twitter: @mustfsnmz