Turkey hails Ukraine's Poroshenko as he is sworn-in
by AA
Jun 07, 2014 - 12:00 am GMT+3
by AA
Jun 07, 2014 12:00 am
KIEV — Turkey's deputy prime minister Bülent Arınç has congratulated Petro Poroshenko after he was sworn in as Ukraine's new president.
Arınç told Anadolu Agency on Saturday that, by winning a landslide mandate, Poroshenko had given the world hope that he could solve the conflicts that have gripped Ukraine for months.
"Turkey strongly backs the continuation of Ukraine's political sovereignty and looks negatively on any move that would threaten it," Arınç said after attending Poroshenko's inauguration ceremony in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev.
Poroshenko, who won a landslide victory in last month's presidential poll with 55.9 percent of the vote, promised to preserve the country's unity after months of civil unrest as he was sworn-in.
Regarding the Crimea crisis, Arınç reiterated Turkey's position the rights of Crimean Tatars - with whom Turkish people share common ethnicity, culture and language - must be protected.
Stressing that Ukraine would not give up the Black Sea peninsula, which was annexed by Moscow after a controversial referendum in March, Poroshenko said: "Crimea is, was, and always will be, Ukrainian territory."
- 'Blood on their hands'
Starting his inauguration speech in Kiev with the words "Glory to Ukraine" on Saturday, Poroshenko pledged to crush the separatist insurgency in the east.
He called on separatists to lay down their weapons and offered amnesty to those without "blood on their hands".
Tensions are running high in Ukraine's east as separatists in several regions have declared their intention to break away from Kiev, eyeing a repeat of the situation in Crimea.
Western countries have blamed Russia for instigating the conflict in Ukraine and supporting separatist groups, and have sought to punish Moscow by imposing economic sanctions following the annexation of Crimea.
The 48-year-old confectionery magnate's swearing-in ceremony was attended by dozens of foreign dignitaries including U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, together with Arınç.
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