Deputy PM invites Apple to move int’l operations to Turkey in wake of EU’s huge tax penalty

“Apple should move to Turkey… [Turkey is] happy to provide more generous tax incentives… [Apple] won’t have to deal with EU bureaucracy,” he tweeted on Aug. 30, after the EU has the U.S. tech giant must repay a record 13 billion euros ($14.3 billion) in back taxes after ruling that a series of Irish sweetheart tax deals were illegal.

Following the ruling, Apple and the Irish government immediately said they would appeal against the European Commission ruling, with the iPhone maker warning it could cost European jobs.

The White House meanwhile cautioned against “unilateral” measures by the EU.  

Back in the 1990s, Apple made a tax deal with Ireland, saying that the company would pay very low tax rates if it based its European operations in Ireland.

Since then, Apple has created thousands of jobs in Ireland. By 2015 it had 5,000 employees in the country.