Turkish Finance Minister Has ‘Productive’ Meetings On Maiden Washington Trip

Turkish Finance Minister Berat Albayrak made his first official visit to Washington, afterwards saying that he had productive meetings with members of the Trump Administration as well as officials at financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Prior to leaving for the United States, Albayrak unveiled new economic reforms aimed at rejuvenating a struggling Turkish economy plagued by a currency crisis (the Turkish lira has lost about 70 percent of its value against the US dollar) that has caused growing inflation and, as a corollary, increased the cost of living. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan focused heavily on the economy – which officially entered into a recession last year – while campaigning prior to recent municipal elections in which his AK Party lost control over the capital Ankara and Istanbul. The party has demanded recounts in both cities.