“The desired level of cooperation with social media companies has not been achieved despite previous discussions,” Erdogan said at an Ankara human rights training event, according to Reuters.

Turkey’s government, which blocked access to the platform last week, is in discussions with Instagram executives, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said in a post on X.

Uraloglu said Turkey had expressed some sensitivities about Instagram’s compliance with Turkish laws in a meeting with representatives of the platform last week.

It is recalled that last Wednesday the director of communication of the Turkish presidency Fahrettin Altun criticized the platform for its decision to block posts of condolences for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniya in Iran’s capital, Tehran, on July 31.

Subsequently, the Information and Communications Technology Authority of Turkey (BTK) published its decision to block users’ access to Instagram on August 2 on its website.

What Meta replied

“As a result of Instagram being blocked in Turkey, millions of people are deprived of ways to connect with their family and friends every day, while businesses are no longer able to reach their customers in the same way,” said a spokesperson for Meta META.O , which owns the social networking platform.

“We will continue to do everything we can to restore our services.”

Wave of reactions to the exclusion

Turkey ranks fifth in the world in terms of Instagram usage, with more than 57 million usersfollowed by India, the US, Brazil and Indonesia, according to data platform Statista.

Thousands of people on X protested the access ban, with Turkish hashtags translating to “accessban, bringinstagramback, ecommercehalted” topping the trending list after the ban.

A blow to business

Among those unhappy with the ban is Basak, 34, who runs a handmade jewelery design Instagram account with more than 30,000 followers, saying the ban has caused difficulties for her business.

“Some of my clients reached out to me by logging into Instagram via VPN and other social media platforms, but my opportunity to access new people and leads stopped immediately,” he said.

“My sales are down. If this (banning access) continues, it is not possible for me to make ends meet as I cannot reach a wider audience.”

Banning access to Instagram cost an estimated $11.5 million

Internet NetBlocks estimates that banning access to Instagram cost the Turkish economy about $11.5 million a day.

THE Turkish e-commerce business association ETID estimates that Turkish businesses generate about 900 million pounds ($27 million) in revenue from Instagram daily, vice president Emre Ekmekci said.

If the ban continues, there will be a gradual shift of both sellers and users to other platforms, he said.

“We are optimistic that the meeting will be positive and the parties will be able to find a solution. This is not only a political issue, there is also a commercial impact.”