Erdogan: Türkiye ready to mediate talks between Ukraine, Russia

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, following talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, expressed confidence that the war between Ukraine and Russia will end at the negotiating table.

“During trilateral negotiations, the sides focused on the possibility of ending the war. A month ago, as you know, we, namely, the UN, Ukraine, Russia and Türkiye, demonstrated a historic example of joint work. Not only Ukraine, but the whole world began to feel the positive consequences of the Istanbul Agreement, thanks to which the grain is safely exported to world markets through the Black Sea,” President Erdogan said at a briefing following talks with President Zelenskyy and Guterres in Lviv city, Report informs referring to the Ukrainian media.

He reminded that 25 ships have left the ports of the Odesa region and have supplied about 625,000 tons of Ukrainian grain since August 1, when the agreement entered into force.

“During the meeting, we were discussing how to increase the effectiveness of the existing mechanism. We considered the possibility of converting the positive atmosphere of the Istanbul agreements into sustainable peace,” the Turkish leader noted.

“I believe that the war in Ukraine will end at the negotiating table. The main problem is to determine the shortest path that will lead to the negotiating table,” President Erdogan said, adding that both the Ukrainian president and the UN secretary-general agree with him.

He also said that the international community must take on more responsibility to revive the diplomatic process.

President Erdogan noted that Türkiye is ready to be a mediator of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.

The Turkish leader also expressed confidence that high-level negotiations between the Russian Federation and Ukraine could be resumed on the basis of the Istanbul agreements, reached in Istanbul in March 2022.

President Erdogan once again expressed support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and expressed condolences on his behalf and on behalf of the entire Turkish people in connection with the missile attack on Ukraine’s Kharkiv city on August 17.