Russian foreign minister arrives in Turkiye ahead of trilateral meeting

By Hatice Ozdemir Tosun and Ayse Yildiz

ANTALYA, Turkiye (AA) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived Wednesday in the Turkish province of Antalya ahead of a high-level tripartite meeting between Turkiye, Russia, and Ukraine.

Lavrov and his Russian delegation landed at the Antalya airport and traveled to a hotel where they will stay.

The Ukrainian and Russian delegations will stay in separate hotels before the crucial meeting Thursday as part of Turkiye's efforts to mediate between the warring countries.

Turkiye’s foreign minister hopes the meeting will be a "turning point" and "important step" toward peace and stability and he said Tuesday that Ankara will "continue to make efforts for a lasting peace."

Officials have accredited 334 local and foreign journalists from various media organizations from 34 countries to cover the meeting.

They include Ukraine and Russia, as well as the US, Britain, Germany, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Netherlands, and China.

A total of 150 foreign media personnel are attending the meeting and 184 journalists from Turkiye have been accredited.

*Writing by Iclal Turan in Istanbul