Top diplomats from Russia and Ukraine met in Turkey

The face-to-face talks were held near Antalya, as the meeting was the first one to welcome a Russian minister negotiating on the crisis.

According to foreign ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko, the Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba went to Turkey to negotiate “on Russia ceasing its hostilities and ending its war against Ukraine”.

So far, dialogue between Kyiv and Moscow has been unsuccessful, with creating humanitarian corridors for civilian evacuation being the only aspect the parts agreed on.

“I am not pinning any great hopes on [the talks], but we will try and get the most out of [the talks].

“I will demand a ceasefire to liberate our territories, and of course to resolve the humanitarian issues, or rather catastrophes created by the Russian military.

“Owing to the actions of the Ukrainian armed forces, as well as the coordinated actions with partners regarding sanctions, I am going to these negotiations in a strong position,” commented Dmytro Kuleba.

On the other side, demands from Moscow include Kyiv neutrality and the urgent dropping of NATO membership Ukraine aims for.

Mustafa Aydin, professor at Kadir Has University in Istanbul, commented on the situation:

“Russia is not yet close to entertaining peace, though it is slowly changing its stance. Its initially uncompromising posture is slowly giving way to a negotiation stance though not yet enough for a concrete outcome.”

The talks between Lavrov and Kuleba were also assisted by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. However, it was Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who insisted for Ankara to mediate these negotiations.

“We are working to stop this crisis from transforming into a tragedy. I hope the meeting between the ministers will open the way to a permanent ceasefire,” Erdogan explained.

Despite the current crisis, Turkey has strong connections with both sides involved. However, Ankara has opposed sanctions on Moscow, yet named the Russian invasion “unacceptable” and called for urgent ceasefire. Turkey has also sold drones to Ukraine and opposed Russian policies in Syria, Libya, as well as Crimea.

According to the UN, with the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, we are witnessing the largest humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II, as more than 2 million people were displaced from their homes.

 

Source: aljazeera.com