Japan’s foreign minister due in Turkiye to discuss Ukraine crisis

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi is set to visit Turkiye over the weekend to discuss the Ukraine crisis and bilateral relations with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

Addressing a news conference in Tokyo, Hayashi said he will be visiting Ankara and UAE over the course of three days starting Friday to “confirm coordination on the situation in Ukraine, stabilization of international crude oil market and deepen bilateral ties.”

He said Turkiye’s Cavusoglu has “just hosted two Foreign Ministers of Russia and Ukraine” besides visiting the two capitals, Moscow and Kyiv.

Last week, in a major breakthrough, Turkiye succeeded in bringing together top diplomats of Russia and Ukraine in Antalya, Turkiye’s Mediterranean province.

The three-way meeting among Turkiye, Russia and Ukraine was held ahead of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum held last weekend.

This week, Cavusoglu visited Moscow and Kyiv in Turkiye’s efforts to end Russia’s war on Ukraine which began on Feb. 24.

Hayashi said Turkiye and Japan will also mark 100 years of diplomatic relations in 2024.

“This visit is aimed at deepening the bilateral relations,” he added.

On his planned trip to the UAE, the current chair of the UN Security Council as non-permanent member, Hayashi said the two countries will marks 50 years of diplomatic relations this year.

“We would like to confirm coordination to stabilize the international crude oil market with UAE which is an OPEC member country,” the Japanese foreign minister said.

Early this week, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida spoke to Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan that the UAE must make “proactive contributions” as a major oil producer.

On Thursday, Kishida also spoke to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss the energy supply stability.

UNSC has held several rounds of discussions on Russia’s war on Ukraine but has failed to come up with a plan to end the war after Russia vetoed the US move. Both are permanent members of the top UN body.

Russia launched its war against Ukraine on Feb. 24. It has drawn international condemnation, led to sweeping financial sanctions and export controls on Moscow, and spurred an exodus of global firms from Russia.

At least 780 civilians have been killed and 1,252 injured in Ukraine since the beginning of the war, according to the UN, which says the true number is likely much higher.

Nearly 3.17 million people have also fled to neighboring countries, according to UN figures.