Erdogan vows to break Turkey’s dependence on Russian oil and gas

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan renewed his rhetorical attacks on Russia on Saturday, vowing to break his country's dependence on the Kremlin's oil and gas, according to The Telegraph.

During a televised speech, Erdogan kept up the verbal barrages that Turkey and Moscow have exchanged since November 24, when the Turkish air force shot down a Russian jet fighter, the report says.

Turkey imports almost all of its energy, with more than half of its gas imports – and about 10% of its oil – coming from Russia.

Erdogan made a point of commending Turkey's energy-rich friends like Qatar and Azerbaijan. "It is possible to find different suppliers," he said, referring to energy imports.

Since the jet was shot down, Russia has banned imports of food from Turkey and prevented its citizens from going on holiday in the country. But Erdogan said that his country "will never bow down to pressure from Russia," adding that he "did not care whether Russia buys Turkish food or not."

Russia has also suspended negotiations with Turkey on a proposal for a new gas pipeline across the Black Sea. But Erdogan claimed that Turkey had already decided to break off the talks because of Russia's "non-compliance with our demands."