Ankara’s “greatest desire” is to see Moscow and Kiev reach a “definitive result” in peace talks, the president has said
Türkiye is ready to continue mediating between Russia and Ukraine to help end the conflict, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said, hailing the recent talks in Istanbul.
Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Erdogan described the recent round of Russia-Ukraine talks – the first direct engagement between the two sides since 2022 – as critical to settling the conflict.
“Bringing the delegations of the two countries together in Istanbul is extremely important for the end of the war that started on February 24, 2022, and for the establishment of peace in the region,” he said, as quoted by TRT Haber.
The Turkish president said his country is “not just saying ‘let the war end,’ we are also proposing methods, preparing the ground and making calls for this.”
“Our greatest desire is to obtain a definitive result from the peace talks. Therefore, we are determined to continue our mediation role for the end of this war. We will make every effort to keep the channels of dialogue open and the negotiations to continue between the parties,” he added, stressing that the conflict cannot be resolved militarily.
During the two-hour Istanbul meeting, Russia and Ukraine agreed to carry out a large-scale prisoner swap and exchange the preliminary terms for a potential ceasefire and discuss a follow-up round of talks.
Türkiye has been a key mediator between Moscow and Kiev since 2022. That year, it hosted peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, which failed to bring about a breakthrough – after what Moscow claims was intervention by former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who reportedly advised Kiev not to accept a deal and keep on fighting. Ankara has also been a regular intermediary in prisoner exchanges between the two belligerents.
Russia has said it is open to dialogue and ready to consider a ceasefire with Ukraine, although it has expressed concerns that Kiev could use the pause to restore its battered military and receive more weapons shipments from the West.
