The US and EU are stepping up pressure on Turkey to crack down on Russian sanctions evasion amid concerns that the country’s banking sector is a potential backdoor for illicit finance. 

The US is focusing on Turkish banks that have integrated into Mir, Russia’s domestic payments system, two western officials involved in the plans told the FT, as Brussels prepares a delegation to express its concerns to Turkish officials directly.

Five of Turkey’s largest banks, VakıfBank, Ziraat Bank, İş Bank, DenizBank and Halkbank, are members of the Mir payment system, which was developed by Russia’s central bank as a domestic alternative to Visa and Mastercard.

As part of the broader crackdown on sanctions evasion, Western efforts will target individuals handling payments on behalf of Russians as well as businesses that have helped set up parallel payment networks for Moscow, according to one of the officials.

Other measures under discussion include targeting more individuals involved in Russia’s software, ecommerce and cyber security industries, two officials said.