Erdogan Helped Turks Evade Iran Sanctions, Reza Zarrab Says<br />On Wednesday, Mr. Zarrab testified that he had paid bribes of 45 million to 50 million euros<br />and $7 million to Mr. Caglayan; he said Mr. Caglayan asked for 50 percent of the profits generated by the scheme, which was being run through a Turkish state bank, Halkbank.<br />As recently as Thursday, before Mr. Zarrab, 34, told his story to jurors in Federal District Court in New York, Mr. Erdogan said, "We did not breach<br />the sanctions." "Whatever the verdict is, we did the right thing," he said at a closed meeting with his deputies, Turkish state media reported.<br />30, 2017<br />Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey personally ordered that two Turkish banks be allowed to participate in an oil-for-gold scheme<br />that violated United States sanctions on Iran, according to testimony on Thursday by a Turkish-Iranian gold trader in a federal trial in Manhattan.<br />Mr. Zarrab testified that it was Zafer Caglayan, Turkey’s economy minister at the time, who told him of<br />Mr. Erdogan’s approval for the two banks, Ziraat Bank and VakifBank, to participate in the scheme.<br />On Thursday, Mr. Zarrab said he had also paid bribes to the general manager of Halkbank, Suleyman Aslan, who was critical to their scheme, he said.
