Peace plans will not work without Russia – Erdoğan

President of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said it is necessary to avoid any steps that could escalate the war in Ukraine and possibly spread the conflict to the NATO member states.

Source: Reuters citing Erdogan's words at a meeting with foreign ambassadors, European Pravda reports

Details: At the event, the Turkish leader said that Ankara would continue to work on reviving the Black Sea grain deal, which Türkiye secured between Kyiv and Moscow together with the UN.

"While putting forth our support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, we have already said that peace plans excluding Russia will not yield any results," he said, citing the global Peace Summit scheduled for this year in Switzerland.

Erdogan also said that, in Ankara's view, "steps that would exacerbate conflicts in the region, that would spread to NATO as well must be avoided," without specifying what he meant.

Türkiye supports Ukraine's territorial integrity and has provided military and political support to Ukraine, but it also maintains warm relations with Russia and opposes sanctions against it.

Background:

Last week, during Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to Ankara, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan again offered his country as a platform for negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow, including a "peace summit" with the participation of Russia. 

Recently, Hakan Fidan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye, stressed the necessity to hold negotiations on a ceasefire in Ukraine as soon as possible.

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