* Photo: Sefa Karacan - Moscow / Anadolu Agency (AA)
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Turkey's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Russia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov met in Russia's capital city of Moscow today (March 16). Minister Çavuşoğlu will also meet Ukraine's Minister of Foregn Affairs Dmytro Kuleba tomorrow.
President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced yesterday that Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu would first visit Russia, then Ukraine amid the ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the war between the two neighboring countries.
Speaking ahead of his meeting with Lavrov, Çavuşoğlu underlined that diplomacy is all the more important in periods when there are challenges and hardships. He also thanked Lavrov for his participation in the tripartite meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia-Turkey-Ukraine in Antalya as well as his support for the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADP).
As reported by the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA), ahead of the meeting, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Russia "appreciates Turkey's balanced position" between Moscow and Kyiv.
Noting that Turkey and Russia have different positions on Ukraine, Sergey Lavrov stated that Russia also appreciates that Turkey remains committed and fully implements the Montreux Convention.
According to Lavrov, in addition to Ukraine, the resolution processes in Libya, Syria and Afghanistan would also be addressed at their meeting.
Minister Çavuşoğlu, for his part, said that Ankara has displayed a "clear, balanced and objective" stance from the very beginning. "As a country that has good ties with both Russia and Ukraine, Turkey continued its role as an honest mediator and facilitator despite all difficulties," he said, adding that "Turkey will continue to implement the Montreux Convention".
Press conference after the meeting
After talks with Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a joint news conference: "Today's talks confirmed that we need to meet often and regularly exchange views on the key issues of our bilateral agenda, but first of all about the international situation, which has been experiencing deep changes".
Lavrov said that he and Çavuşoğlu had assessed the political dialogue and bilateral ties of Russia and Turkey, including between presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and discussed preparations for a new meeting of the countries' High-Level Cooperation Council.
"Ties between Russia and Turkey have growing importance for maintaining regional and global stability, and both countries are known for their ability to find optimal solutions to problems based on mutual benefit and a balance of interests," he said, as reported by the AA.
"Ankara is following a pragmatic line, is promoting a balanced approach" on the Ukraine issue, said Lavrov, adding that it "did not join in anti-Russian sanctions". He added that "Russian-Turkish joint efforts help to maintain the cease-fire in Syria, Lybia, and Nagorno-Karabakh". Lavrıo also welcomed the talks on normalization between Turkey and Armenia.
Minister Lavrov said that he did not speak with Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu about new Russia-Ukraine meetings at the ministerial and presidential levels, as such meetings need to have solid preparation.
Çavuşoğlu, for his part, said that Turkey's "priority" is the evacuation of its nationals and civilians from the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol, along with an "urgent" humanitarian ceasefire. Saying that Turkey has had a "clear stance" since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine war, he stated that Ankara is "working to achieve a permanent humanitarian ceasefire".
Such a ceasefire is a "must" to evacuate civilians from Mariupol due to "high risk" in the area, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu stated further.
'Not easy, but there is hope'
Speaking in an interview with Russia's RBC TV Channel, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the Russia-Ukraine peace talks "are not easy, but there is hope for finding a compromise".
Lavrov said that his assessment is based on the information provided by Russia's delegation at the peace talks with Ukraine.
"I am guided by the assessments that our negotiators give. They state that the negotiations are not easy for obvious reasons, but nevertheless there is some hope for finding a compromise," he noted, adding that some representatives of Ukraine's delegation gave similar assessments.
Lavrov said that "it is too early to speak about a meeting at the level of foreign ministers," claiming that "the Ukrainian politicians use such events to get publicity and demand a decision at a higher level".
Minister Lavrov stressed that high-level meetings are organized to address difficult issues that cannot be overcome otherwise. Lavrov also indicated "the format that is working in Belarus is currently the most effective" and that "the negotiators are close to signing an agreement". He expressed "hope that Kyiv will not change its position at the last moment".
Asked about the mediation efforts by some countries, the diplomat said France, Israel, Switzerland and Turkey have offered mediation.
"Proposals from those countries that do not play a Russophobic game, understand the root causes of the current crisis, understand that we are talking about the fundamental national interests -- the legitimate interests of the Russian Federation -- and that do not join this war, of course, we consider these proposals positively," Lavrov said.
He noted that "Israel and Turkey did not join anti-Russian sanctions and so Russia views their efforts favorably". (AS/SD)
