Turkey is ready to host a meeting between Ukrainian and Russian leaders, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Thursday and reiterated the need for an urgent cease-fire.
Speaking to reporters during an official visit to Uzbekistan, Erdoğan said that he believes that the meetings held by the Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul gave a meaningful impetus to the peace process.
"Russia's decision to significantly reduce its military operations in Kyiv and Chernihiv is indeed an important step. Likewise, the statements of the heads of state that they can come together when an agreement is reached show how important this step is. We expect them to be implemented and for the war to end before it causes more death and destruction."
Expressing his happiness over Turkey being host to such an important meeting thanks to its active diplomacy and balanced approach, Erdoğan said: "I am determined to hold talks with both Mr. (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and Mr. (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelenskyy as soon as I return. In these meetings, we will express my thanks to both of them on behalf of myself and my nation and say, 'Our goal is to bring you together as soon as possible.' I hope that we will get a historical record from them at the point of putting them together. In this context, we are ready to host the meeting to be held at the level of heads of state. But in the meantime, it is of great importance to ensure a temporary cease-fire."
"I think that peace is the most important solution and way out. From this point of view, I hope we can be instrumental in bringing this work to an end as soon as possible. As Turkey, it will make us happy to have completed this work with the confidence of both Mr. Putin and Mr. Zelenskyy in such a process," he said.
Turkey has been one of the countries leading efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has impacted millions of civilians. Turkey says it can facilitate peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, but says that a cease-fire and humanitarian corridors are needed first. The latest round of talks hosted by Turkey on Tuesday lasted three hours and Russian and Ukrainian negotiators later held separate news conferences to inform the world about the outcome. While Ukraine has called for several countries, including Turkey, to be guarantors in a possible future peace deal, Russia announced it will significantly decrease military activities in the direction of Kyiv and Chernihiv to increase trust for future negotiations.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu called the meeting in Istanbul "the most meaningful progress since the start of negotiations" so far and pointed to an emerging rapprochement between the countries. The talks hosted by Turkey sketched out what could end up being a framework for ending the war. The talks had been expected to resume on Wednesday, but Çavuşoğlu said the two sides were bringing the proposals back to their capitals.
At the conference in Istanbul, Ukraine’s delegation laid a framework under which the country would declare itself neutral and its security would be guaranteed by an array of other nations. Russian delegation head Vladimir Medinsky said negotiators would take Ukraine’s proposals to Russian President Putin and then Moscow would provide a response, but he did not say when.
Progress made at the peace talks between Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Turkey may pave the way for a meeting at the leaders’ level, Erdoğan said Tuesday. Ahead of the talks in Istanbul, Erdoğan met the Russian and Ukrainian delegations and reiterated his call for a cease-fire. “We believe that a just peace will have no losers, and a prolonged conflict is not in anyone’s interest,” he said.
Çavuşoğlu said the talks had made “meaningful” progress and the two sides had reached “a consensus and common understanding” on some issues. He said the meeting would be followed by one between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers at an unspecified time. A meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents is also “on the agenda,” he said. On the peace talks organized in the Turkish metropolis, he said: “It is an indication of the trust of the parties in Turkey.” He added that “the top priority is to achieve a cease-fire as soon as possible and pave the way for a permanent political solution.”
Turkey also hosted the foreign ministers of Russia and Ukraine in Antalya earlier this month. Foreign Ministers Sergey Lavrov of Russia and Dmytro Kuleba of Ukraine met for talks in the Turkish resort town of Antalya, which Çavuşoğlu also attended. The talks were largely inconclusive, but Ankara considers the fact that they took place at all a success.
Touching upon the negotiations between the two warring sides, Erdoğan said Thursday that Ukraine does not insist on joining NATO.
“In fact, I do not think that Ukraine will be too insistent on the European Union issue. Because, in this process, the member states of the European Union, with the exception of some, were not serious about this. Despite all of this, I learned and heard about Mr. Putin's positive view on Ukraine's entry into the European Union. Of course, we will learn the final situation during these meetings. Hearing this from him during my meeting with him will give us the opportunity to more accurately evaluate the steps to be taken in this regard.”
Regarding Turkey’s possible guarantor role, Erdoğan said that Turkey is open in principle to act as a guarantor for Ukraine, but details need to be clarified.
Underlining that the international community appreciates Turkey’s efforts aiming for peace based on a principled and balanced policy, Erdoğan reiterated that Turkey will not join sanctions against Russia.
“While expressing our reaction to Russia's military activities, we also attach importance to maintaining our dialogue. This dialogue is important and necessary not only in the context of Ukraine but also in many geographies that are closely related to us, such as Syria, Libya and the South Caucasus.”
Regarding Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich's participation in the peace talks in Istanbul, he said: “Abramovich participated in the negotiations as a member of the Russian delegation ... If Russia and Mr. Putin preferred to include Abramovich in their delegation, it means that he believed and trusted him. We greeted him as well as everyone else at that meeting. I wish success to all the members of the delegation who participated in these studies. I hope that we will see the results of this effort as soon as possible.”
Maintaining its neutral and balanced stance, Turkey continues its diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the Ukraine conflict, urging all sides to exercise restraint. While Ankara has opposed international sanctions designed to isolate Moscow, it also closed its straits to prevent some Russian vessels from crossing through them. NATO ally Turkey borders Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea and has good ties with both. Since the beginning of the conflict, Ankara has offered to mediate between the two sides and host peace talks, underlining its support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. Having called Russia’s invasion an unacceptable violation of international law, Turkey has carefully formulated its rhetoric not to offend Moscow, with which it has close energy, defense and tourism ties. Erdoğan has repeatedly said Turkey will not abandon its relations with Russia or Ukraine, underlining that Ankara’s ability to speak to both sides is an asset.
