No plans to impose sanctions against Russia: Spokesperson

ANKARA

Turkey does not plan to impose sanctions against Russia since Ankara does not want to harm its interests, presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said on March 1.

The European Union did not request Turkey to join its sanctions, he told broadcaster CNN Türk.

“We are not in the opinion of imposing sanctions against Russia. We have commercial ties such as natural gas, tourism and agriculture. We do not want to make a harmful move for our country,” he said.

Another reason for not imposing sanctions against Moscow is to keep Turkey’s lines of communication open with Russia, he said.

“We have to act by taking into account the priorities of our country. There should be an actor who can talk to Russia. Who will talk to Russia when everyone burns the bridges? We are not planning a sanction package in order to keep this channel open,” Kalın emphasized.

Russia’s demands at the ceasefire negotiations with Ukraine, such as the recognition of Crimea and the disarmament of Ukraine, are “unrealistic, he said, noting that Ankara considers these demands are not “acceptable.”

“I don’t want to be pessimistic, but the picture I see is not promising,” Kalın stated.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s main goal is not Ukraine, but he wants to “make a bigger bargain with the West,” he explained.

Çavuşoğlu: Turkey not imposing sanctions in principle

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu also reiterated that Turkey does not participate in the sanctions imposed on Russia in principle and has no inclination to do so.

Turkey does not have to take sides, just because it is a NATO member, the minister said in a televised interview on March 1.

Turkey is a country that abides by and contributes to NATO’s decisions and displays a principled stance, he said.

“Despite the differences of opinion, we are the country that has developed cooperation with both countries. When there is a war, we don’t have to take sides. On the contrary, we are the country that can establish a dialogue on both sides in order to end the war,” Çavuşoğlu stated.

Following the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Turkey has been making great efforts to stop the war and establish a ceasefire, Çavuşoğlu also noted.

“If the war is not to be stopped, we have made efforts to reach a humanitarian ceasefire of at least 24 hours, and we are still making efforts,” he stated.