President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed on Saturday to work together on a Black Sea grain corridor, Zelenskyy said at a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart at the Presidential Dolmabahçe Office in Istanbul, according to Anadolu Agency (AA), Bloomberg HT, Yeni Şafak and Türkiye newspaper.
The two leaders spoke to the press after a one-on-one meeting and talks between their delegations, held during the Ukrainian leader’s working visit to Istanbul.
Erdoğan: a fair peace has no losers
Erdoğan said the leaders had discussed in detail the efforts to bring peace to Ukraine and the security situation in the Black Sea, according to AA, Yeni Şafak and Bloomberg HT. He offered his condolences to Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people for those killed in the war, Yeni Şafak and Türkiye reported.
He welcomed the acceleration of diplomatic efforts to end the war, citing the efforts of US President Donald Trump, according to AA, Yeni Şafak and Sabah. Erdoğan said that "a fair peace has no losers" and that Türkiye was ready to make every possible effort to open the way to peace, Yeni Şafak and Bloomberg HT reported. He said the Ukraine-Russia negotiations hosted by Türkiye had shown that concrete results could be achieved through diplomacy, according to AA and Türkiye.
On the Black Sea, Erdoğan said attacks on civilian ships and steps that would increase tension would benefit no one, AA and Türkiye reported. He said such attacks could not be accepted under any circumstances, "whoever they come from and whatever the justification", according to Yeni Şafak, Bloomberg HT and Türkiye. He said Türkiye would continue its talks with the parties to restore safe navigation in the Black Sea, and Sabah and Türkiye reported that he said this would include talks with Russia.
Erdoğan said the two sides had reaffirmed their commitment to Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence, Bloomberg HT and Türkiye reported. He noted that the free trade agreement between the two countries had entered into force on 1 October, bringing them a step closer to their target of 10 billion dollars in annual bilateral trade, according to the same two outlets. He also said he expected Turkish companies that had stayed in Ukraine during the war to make important contributions to the country’s reconstruction, all five outlets reported.
Zelenskyy: grain corridor agreement
Zelenskyy described the talks as very important and said they had covered concrete issues, with a large part devoted to the Black Sea, according to Yeni Şafak, Bloomberg HT and Türkiye. He thanked Erdoğan for the cooperation between the two countries and for Türkiye’s readiness to support steps towards peace and security, Bloomberg HT and Türkiye reported.
"Today we agreed with President Erdoğan to work on the Black Sea grain corridor," Zelenskyy said, as reported by AA, Yeni Şafak and Bloomberg HT. He said Türkiye supported steps that could ensure safe navigation and normal living conditions in the Black Sea, according to AA and Sabah. Yeni Şafak and Bloomberg HT reported that the two leaders also discussed holding meetings in Türkiye.
No written readout of the talks from the Presidency’s Communications Directorate had been found at the time of writing.
Sources
- Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan Dolmabahçe’de Ukrayna Cumhurbaşkanı Zelenskiy ile görüştü: Barış için her türlü gayrete hazırız (Yeni Şafak)
- Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan İstanbul’da Zelenskiy ile görüştü (Bloomberg HT)
- Dolmahçe’de kritik zirve! Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan: Karadeniz’de güvenlik konusunu konuştuk (Türkiye)
- Erdoğan ile Zelenski’den ortak açıklama: Karadeniz’de seyrüsefer güvenliği vurgusu (BirGün / AA)
- Dolmabahçe’de kritik Ukrayna zirvesi! Başkan Erdoğan: Barış için her türlü gayrete hazırız (Sabah)
Photo: Betul photodiaries / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
