ATHENS: A Greek court has ruled that 12 Turks arrested in northern Greece on accusations of participating in an international criminal group smuggling weapons into the country should be detained pending trial, legal sources said on Thursday.
Greek police last week located a group of 15 people close to the Evros river at the Greek-Turkish border. They arrested most of them and confiscated two sacks and one suitcase near them, containing 147 pistols, dozens of bullets and weapons components wrapped in plastic bags.
The 12 suspects are accused of illegally entering Greece and smuggling weapons with the aim of supplying Turkish or other criminal groups active in the country. They have denied any wrongdoing, saying they are migrants and the guns were in the boat that traffickers used to cross the river.
Over the past years, Greece has seen a significant rise in the number of Turkish nationals involved in shootings or arrested for gun possession. Police, according to sources, have linked the increase to a bigger presence in Greece of Turkish criminal groups and gang members settling old scores on foreign ground.
Turks in northern Greece held pending trial for smuggling weapons
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Turks in northern Greece held pending trial for smuggling weapons
- Greek police last week located a group of 15 people close to the Evros river at the Greek-Turkish border
- The 12 suspects are accused of illegally entering Greece and smuggling weapons with the aim of supplying Turkish or other criminal groups active in the country
Trump tariff rollback offers relief for Indian farmers
- Indian exporters had been hit harder than EU rivals among others
- Coffee, spices and tea among exempt products
NEW DELHI: Indian agricultural exporters are among the winners from US President Donald Trump’s exemption of dozens of food items from his reciprocal tariffs regime, which some analysts say could help to revive lost demand.
Trump on Friday removed tariffs he had imposed on more than 200 food products, including beef, as consumer concerns mount over rising US grocery prices.
Unlike EU and Vietnamese suppliers facing 15–20 percent duties, Indian exporters of tea, coffee, spices and cashew nuts were hit harder after Trump doubled tariffs to as high as 50 percent on imports of certain Indian goods, including a punitive 25 percent levy from the end of August on India’s Russian oil purchases.
Ajay Sahai, director general of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO), says that between $2.5 billion and $3 billion of exports will benefit from the tariff exemptions.
Positive signal for wider trade talks
“This order opens space for premium, speciality and value-added products,” he said. “Exporters who shift toward higher-value segments will be better protected from price pressures and can tap rising consumer demand.”
Officials involved in trade and farm export policy said the exemptions are also a positive signal for ongoing US–India trade talks and could ease export pressure triggered by this year’s tariff increases.
Exports of Indian goods to the US fell nearly 12 percent year on year in September to $5.43 billion after tariffs were raised. Indian farm exports, estimated to account for $5.7 billion of the country’s $87 billion exports to the US in 2024, were among those hit.
“The move benefits Indian farmers and exporters of tea, coffee, cashew and fruits and vegetables,” a senior official involved in Indian farm export policy said on condition of anonymity.
Ajay Srivastava, founder of the Global Trade Research Initiative lobby group, said India’s US-bound farm exports — focused on a few high-value spices and niche products — would register limited gains given its weak presence in key exempt items such as tomatoes, citrus fruits, melons, bananas and fruit juices.
“The tariff shift would marginally strengthen India’s position in spices and niche horticulture and help revive some lost US demand after the tariff hikes,” Srivastava added.
Latin American, African and ASEAN suppliers are likely to make larger gains, he said, adding that it was not immediately clear whether Indian exports will be exempt from 25 percent reciprocal tariffs or full 50 percent tariffs.
Exporters, however, fear that other factors will keep potential gains in check, pointing to high freight costs, strong competition from Vietnam and Indonesia and tougher US quality requirements.
“Tariff relief is important, but market recovery also depends on logistics and our ability to match prices,” one exporter said.
