Erdoğan asks Biden to lift 'unfair' sanctions on Turkey

ANKARA

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. President Joe Biden have had a phone talk on March 10.

Erdoğan stressed the importance of Turkey’s role in ending the war in Ukraine, communications directorate said. 

In a 45-minute call, Erdoğan said it was important for Turkey to be a “facilitator in the search for a solution in case the crisis deepens,” agencies reported.

He described a meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held earlier near the Turkish city of Antalya as “a victory for diplomacy.”

The meeting was chaired by the Turkish foreign minister after Turkey lobbied to act as a mediator between the warring countries. It failed to produce any concrete results.

Erdoğan also asked Biden to lift “unfair” sanctions on Turkey. Sanctions on leading defense industry figures were imposed after Ankara acquired a Russian-made air defense system in 2019. Turkey is also no longer a part of the F-35 fighter program.

The White House said President Biden "expressed appreciation" for Turkey’s mediation efforts and that both leaders "reaffirmed their strong support" for Ukraine against Russian aggression.