Ukraine on Wednesday hosted the third summit of Crimea Platform leaders that brought together its allies. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was among the few leaders who managed to pursue a balanced policy both toward Russia and Ukraine to attend the event in Kyiv. Erdoğan sent a video message to the summit and showcased Türkiye’s efforts to end the conflict that marked its second year.
The Turkish leader said in his message that they were advocating a fair and permanent peace deal to end the conflict. “We are working hard to end the bloodshed, at least to have sides to keep communication channels open for preparation for a negotiation table. Ending the conflict and having peace and stability in the Black Sea basin again will be a relief not just for the region but the whole world,” he said.
The Crimean Platform is a diplomatic initiative of Ukraine that seeks to draw global attention to Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. Türkiye is among the countries opposing the annexation. Erdoğan said the platform, established for a more efficient defense of the “Crimean cause” through peaceful means would reinforce their message. “Türkiye never recognized the annexation and since day one, resolutely voiced that this step was illegitimate. We adhere to our stance supporting Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. We voice these points on every platform, particularly in the United Nations. Our priority is the security and prosperity of our Crimean Tatar Turkic compatriots, the indigenous community of Crimea,” he said. Erdoğan also reiterated Türkiye’s call for the release of Nariman Dzhelyal, chairperson of the Crimean Tatar National Assembly and other Crimean Tatars who were jailed under trumped-up charges by the Kremlin-backed administration.
“The wars have no winners and peacetime has no losers. This is our mindset on this issue. We are also working to revive the Black Sea initiative and believe that (the sides) should refrain from any step that would harm the calm in the Black Sea and escalate tensions,” he said. Erdoğan was hailed as the broker of a landmark grain deal that was recently suspended by Russia.
Amid reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin might visit Türkiye later this month, Erdoğan has expressed hope to cram a meeting in his busy schedule and to find a solution for the safe delivery of grain from Ukraine to the world. It was Erdoğan who secured a diplomatic victory by bringing together Russia and Ukraine for a landmark grain deal, and pundits believe it will be him again to bring them together for an agreement.
Unlike the West or any other countries, Erdoğan is among the few leaders maintaining close ties both with Ukrainian leadership and the Kremlin. Speaking to reporters during his return from a one-day trip to Hungary late Sunday, Erdoğan said that he might hold face-to-face talks with Putin to discuss the deal. He noted his busy schedule in September where he will attend a G-20 summit in India and an annual U.N. General Assembly in New York, adding that he would seek an opening in the schedule for an in-person meeting. “Our Foreign Minister (Hakan Fidan) may also visit Russia soon. It is important to have face-to-face talks on this matter,” Erdoğan said.
Earlier, Russian and Turkish officials announced plans for an August meeting between Erdoğan and Putin, who occasionally hold talks over the phone. Neither Ankara nor the Kremlin downgraded relations during the Russia-Ukraine conflict as Russia did with other countries siding with Ukraine. Erdoğan has also hosted and repeatedly held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. “All we want to accomplish, as we cited in our earlier talks with Putin, is to have Russia adopt a positive stance in the grain corridor issue,” Erdoğan told reporters.
Russia last month suspended its part in the grain deal secured with the efforts of Türkiye through a deal signed in Istanbul last year. The deal paved the way for a resumption of grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports after supplies were halted due to the conflict. The Kremlin cited the lack of implementation of its demands in the deal as the grounds for the suspension. Since then, Türkiye engaged in intense diplomatic efforts to resume the deal while Ukraine established a new "humanitarian corridor" instead with the first ship leaving last week.
