Just, lasting peace in Ukraine possible, Erdoğan tells NATO's Rutte
ANKARA
A just and lasting peace on war in Ukraine is possible, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte over a phone call on Tuesday, Türkiye's Communications Directorate said.
During the call, in which Erdoğan and Rutte discussed regional and global issues, Erdoğan said Türkiye has been doing its utmost to end the three-year-long war between Ukraine and Russia, and will continue to do its part in the future.
Stressing that he held contacts with many leaders and representatives of international organizations, including the belligerent parties, Erdoğan said his country has been exerting efforts to end wars in its region and in the world.
The international community should contribute to Ankara's efforts to stop wars and build peace, he added.
After his meeting with Zelensky in capital Ankara, Erdoğan on Tuesday said Türkiye will be an ideal host for possible upcoming meetings between Russia, Ukraine and the U.S. to end the three-year-long war between Moscow and Kiev.
The Turkish president, addressing a joint press conference with visiting Ukrainian counterpart, said Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty are Türkiye's sine qua non.
Erdoğan said during his meeting with Zelensky he underlined that Ankara will provide all kind of support to have negotiations that end in lasting peace.
He said the war, which has caused many "innocent deaths" and enormous destruction, "must end now."
“In order for a just peace to be possible, the countries that we know to be powerful must show their attitude in favor of peace," he said.
"We hosted direct negotiations between the two countries (Russia and Ukraine) in Istanbul in March 2022. As a result of our contacts with the parties, we launched the Black Sea Grain Initiative. In the last three years, we have made direct initiatives with Russia and Ukraine at all levels. In all these efforts, we have sincerely endeavored to be a reliable mediator for both sides, and we have achieved concrete results," he added.
He argued that peace has no losers and the entire world was now waiting for an end to the war.
"This was the reason why we wanted the establishment of the grain corridor and we had a good result in the grain corridor, but unfortunately we could not ensure its continuation. As much as 30,000 tons of grain was sent across," he added.
Moscow did not extend the deal after July 2023, citing restrictions on Russian grain exports.
The Turkish president said that the diplomatic initiative launched by U.S. President Donald Trump to end the war quickly and through negotiations is in line with the policy Türkiye has been pursuing for the last three years.
Earlier in the day, Russian and U.S. delegations met in the Saudi capital Riyadh for the first high-level talks since the Ukraine war started in February 2022. They agreed for more talks on ending the war and to improve bilateral ties.
