Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu will attend the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) meeting in the Russian city of Sochi in July, sources said on Monday, shortly after Kremlin and Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın confirmed that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sent a letter expressing regret about the downing of a Russian jet to Vladimir Putin.

According to reports, Çavuşoğlu accepted Russia's invitation to attend the meeting, and could also hold a bilateral meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

On June 23, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Vasiliy Nebenzya announced that Turkey is invited to the BSEC meeting.

According to an article in Sputnik, Nebenzya invited the foreign ministers of all Black Sea countries, including Turkey and Ukraine.

Although the format of the meeting does not allow for bilateral meetings, Russia is ready to hold such a meeting with Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Nebenzya said.

"We are not running away or hiding from anyone" and are open to all discussions, he said.

Diplomatic relations between Moscow and Ankara soured after an unidentified jet, which turned out to be a Russian Su-24, violated Turkish airspace and was intercepted and shot down on Nov. 24 by Turkish F-16 fighters. The Kremlin ordered sanctions on Turkish food products, an end to visa-free travel and a boycott of Turkey by Russian tourists.