The German government has capped the amount of "Hermes" export guarantees it provides for trade with Turkey at 1.5 billion euros ($1.80 billion), a foreign ministry spokesman said on Friday, as a rift between the two Nato powers deepens.
The "Hermes" guarantees provide German government protection for German companies when foreign debtors fail to pay. Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is seeking re-election on Sunday, has vowed to restrict trade with Turkey to pressure it into releasing around a dozen German or Turkish-German citizens arrested in recent months on political grounds.
Bilateral relations, already strained, have soured further over Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's crackdown on opponents following a failed coup last year. Germany and its partners in the European Union say the crackdown and a referendum that granted Erdogan sweeping powers undermine Turkish democracy.
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