Hurriyet Daily News - Turkey will continue buying natural gas from�Iran�on the basis of a contract, which is due to end in 2026, the Turkish energy minister said on Aug. 8, a day after U.S. President�DonaldTrump�threatened that anyone trading with�Iran�will not do business with the U.S.

Energy Minister Fatih D�nmez said Turkey would continue to buy gas in line with its long-term supply deal with Tehran, and added that planned talks in Washington could produce a solution for the issue.

Turkey is dependent on imports for almost all of its energy needs and�Iran�is a key supplier of Ankara�s natural gas and oil purchases.

�A delegation of ours is in the United States right now and negotiations are being held on a series of matters including the sanctions issue,� D�nmez told private broadcaster A Haber.

�I think a good outcome will emerge from this dialogue.�

A Turkish delegation is visiting Washington this week to discuss growing friction between the NATO allies.

D�nmez said Turkey�s long-term supply contract with�Iran�was valid until 2026 and Ankara was set to buy the 9.5 billion cubic meter of the contract amount.

�We will be continuing this trade as we cannot possibly leave our citizens in dark,� he said, adding that Turkey and�Iran, two neighboring countries, had trade ties that traced back long years.

Nearly 40 percent of Turkey�s electricity production is sourced with natural gas.

Saying that the U.S. sanctions on�Iran�were unilateral, D�nmez added: �We adopted the United Nations sanctions on�Iran�in the past. Even the European Union is extremely annoyed by today�s situation. We are conducting legitimate trade here, which is of great importance in terms of supply security,� he said.

The first wave of Iranian sanctions went into effect on Aug. 7 and targets mainly financial transactions and commercial airline sales with�Iran. In November, measures to stop the sale of Iranian energy are set to go into effect.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevl�t �avu?o?lu has repeatedly ruled out complying with U.S. measures, insisting Turkey is bound only by international agreements.

�We have told them we will not join these sanctions,� �avu?o?lu said in July, recalling a visit by U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorist Financing Marshall Billingslea to Ankara in the previous week.

�We buy oil from�Iran�and we purchase it in proper conditions. What is the other option?� �avu?o?lu said Turkish authorities told the U.S. delegation, as quoted by daily Cumhuriyet on July 24 at a roundtable with journalists.