Russia, Ukraine warm to Turkey helping ease tensions -Turkish sources

The diplomatic sources said that Turkey had told both countries, as well as Ankara's NATO partners, that it was seeking to "ease tensions, prevent conflict, and increase dialogue". On Wednesday, Erdogan's spokesman was cited as saying the president would visit Ukraine "within a few weeks", and that Turkey was in close contact with Kyiv and Moscow on the crisis.


Reuters | Updated: 20-01-2022 21:56 IST | Created: 20-01-2022 21:56 IST
Russia, Ukraine warm to Turkey helping ease tensions -Turkish sources

Both Russia and Ukraine are open to the idea of Turkey playing a role to ease tensions between the two countries, as proposed by Ankara in November, Turkish diplomatic sources said on Thursday. Turkey is also holding talks on hosting the next meeting of the OSCE Minsk Group, at which Ukraine's eastern Donbass region will be discussed, the sources told reporters on condition of anonymity.

No date had been set for the Istanbul meeting of the group, but representatives from Russia, Ukraine, the OSCE Minsk group and from Donbass were expected to attend, they said, adding the group would meet "frequently". Western countries say they fear Russia is planning a new assault against Ukraine after it massed tens of thousands of troops near the border in recent months, though Moscow denies planning an attack.

"Both Russia and Ukraine are warm to Turkey's mediation," one of the sources said. NATO member Turkey has good ties with both Kyiv and Moscow, but opposes Russian policies in Syria and Libya, as well as its annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014.

Ukraine has welcomed Turkey's involvement in negotiations with Russia. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in November he had asked Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan to pass on a list of prisoners to Russian President Vladimir Putin for a potential prisoner swap, though the swap never took place. Ukraine has also bought Turkish drones to use in its war against Russian-backed forces in eastern Ukraine, angering Moscow, and agreed a deal with Ankara on manufacturing the drones locally this year.

Ankara said two months ago it was ready to be a mediator in the crisis, an offer Moscow dismissed at the time. It has also said sanctions on Russia is not a solution, though the European Union threatened on Thursday "massive" sanctions if there is an attack. Speaking on about Turkey's proposals, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday said: "Of course we welcome efforts by any countries which can help resolve the situation in Ukraine. The main differences between Russia and Ukraine are related to (slow) implementation of the Minsk accords by Kyiv."

"If our Turkish partners are able to influence Kyiv and the implementation of the earlier reached agreements, this could only be welcomed," he told reporters. The diplomatic sources said that Turkey had told both countries, as well as Ankara's NATO partners, that it was seeking to "ease tensions, prevent conflict, and increase dialogue".

On Wednesday, Erdogan's spokesman was cited as saying the president would visit Ukraine "within a few weeks", and that Turkey was in close contact with Kyiv and Moscow on the crisis. A day earlier, Erdogan had dismissed the prospect of Russia invading Ukraine as "unrealistic", but added that he needed to discuss the tensions with Putin.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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