As Ankara seeks a role in potential Ukraine-Russia peace talks, the top Russian diplomat paid a visit to Turkey less than a week after the Ukrainian president’s trip to Ankara.
ANKARA — During his visit to Turkey on Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, praised the Trump administration’s decision to initiate direct dialogue with Russia, as Ankara said it’s willing to host future peace talks with Ukraine.
Speaking after his two-hour meeting with Lavrov, Fidan praised Washington’s decision to engage in high-level talks with Moscow.
« As we enter the fourth year of the war, there is an initiative launched by the United States aimed at ending the war through negotiations, » Fidan said during a joint press conference with Lavrov.
« In that framework, we are ready to contribute all forms of support for peace to be achieved through talks. We are ready to host these talks as we have done before, » Fidan added, in reference to potential peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.
Turkish mediation
Turkey is eyeing a role in possible peace talks between Russia and Ukraine as US President Donald Trump is increasing pressure on Kyiv to sit at the table with Moscow. On the same day as the US-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 18, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in Ankara seeking to shore up international support for his country. Washington and Moscow agreed to start working toward ending the war in Ukraine, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after the talks.
Turkey hosted direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul in April 2022, shortly after the Russian invasion, but the negotiations ended without a breakthrough. Since the war began, Ankara has avoided joining Western sanctions on Russia. However, it has continued to provide military support to Ukraine and has closed the Turkish straits to Russian naval vessels, blocking their access to and from the Black Sea.
“We deem the US’s new initiative as a result-oriented approach and attach great importance to it,” Fidan added.
Lavrov, in turn, said his country highly appreciated the dialogue channel instituted with the United States despite a series of disagreements.
« We have informed our Turkish friends in detail about the Russia-US talks that took place on Feb. 18 in Riyadh, which were highly appreciated in terms of the opportunity to finally have a normal dialogue, despite the numerous disagreements, » Lavrov said, speaking through a translator.
Erdogan meeting
During his official visit to Ankara, which coincided with the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Lavrov also met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Erdogan’s spokesman Akif Cagatay Kilic and communication czar Fahrettin Altun also attended the meeting along with Fidan. The Russian side did not release a list of those in the delegation but Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov appeared in a photo from the meeting with Erdogan.
Asked whether the Istanbul talks between Russia and Ukraine could serve as a foundation for the fresh talks between the two warring countries during the press conference with Fidan, Lavrov said the two sides had come close to an agreement in Istanbul.
« We were on the verge of an agreement during the Istanbul talks, » Lavrov said, claiming that Western forces prevented a potential deal between the warring countries.
He listed several issues that he claimed the two sides had agreed on, including Ukraine abandoning its bid to join NATO, banning foreign military bases in Ukraine, and receiving security guarantees from countries such as Germany and Turkey.
Russia-US consultations to continue
During the talks in Riyadh between Rubio and Lavrov as well as other high-level Turkish and Russian officials, Washington and Moscow also agreed to normalize operations at their respective diplomatic missions.
Lavrov announced on Monday that the two countries were planning to hold a meeting on the issue later this week.
“Last week, two technical-level meetings were held on this issue. This week, more comprehensive consultations will take place,” Lavrov said, without providing further details.