Türkiye ready to take all kinds of facilitating steps in Russia-Ukraine war: President Erdogan

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Türkiye is ready to take all kinds of facilitating steps, including mediation, for a just and lasting peace between Ukraine and Russia, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday.

Erdogan and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a closed-door meeting at the Turkish House on the sidelines of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, where they discussed bilateral relations, the course of the Ukraine-Russia war, peace efforts, and regional and global issues.

Stating that Türkiye has believed from the beginning that the Russia-Ukraine war can be ended through dialogue while preserving Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, Erdogan told Zelenskyy that Ankara is continuing its efforts to achieve this goal, according to Türkiye's Communications Directorate.

Erdogan added that efforts will continue to revive the Black Sea Grain Initiative and ensure a cease-fire that can open the door to peace between Kyiv and Moscow.

Türkiye is continuing its efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war, which began in February 2022.

Ankara has urged Kyiv and Moscow to end the fighting through negotiations, with Türkiye ready for any initiative, including mediation, to lay the groundwork for peace.

Türkiye first hosted a meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers in the Mediterranean city of Antalya in March 2022.

Those efforts led to the landmark Black Sea grain deal in 2022, but Moscow did not extend the agreement after July 2023, citing restrictions on Russian grain exports.