Turkey's Erdoğan, Russia's Putin talk Ukraine on phone

ISTANBUL — Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has discussed with Russian President Vladimir Putin the crisis in Ukraine, said the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.

Erdoğan stressed the importance of respecting the outcome of the Ukrainian presidential election and prioritizing dialogue, the office said in a statement.

Erdoğan said it was essential that Moscow protect the rights of Crimean Tatars after Russia annexed the peninsula in March, urging the Russian president to consult with the Tatar National Assembly.

The Turkish premier added that lifting the ban on Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzhemilev's entry into the Crimean peninsula and meeting with the president of the National Assembly, Refat Chubarov, would be 'positive' steps Moscow can take.

Dzhemilev returned to the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, after he was denied entry into the peninsula by Russian forces on May 3.

On March 21, Putin signed into law the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine following a referendum in the peninsula.

Ninety seven percent of voters chose to secede from Ukraine and join Russia, which came after the ouster of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych following months of anti-government protests.

Ukrainians elected pro-European businessman Petro Poroshenko as president at Sunday's presidential election, seeking an end to months of turmoil in the eastern regions.

Erdoğan and Putin also discussed the civil war in Syria, the Turkish premier's office said.