Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Türkiye will likely take place in late April or early May, Russian state-run RIA news agency reported on Wednesday, citing a source in Ankara.
Earlier on Wednesday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that preparations for the meeting between Putin and President Tayyip Erdoğan were continuing.
A Turkish official told Reuters last week that Putin would visit Türkiye, a NATO member, on Feb. 12.
The trip, delayed twice since late last year, will mark Putin’s first visit to a NATO member state since he launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan earlier this week said Putin and Erdoğan would discuss the gas hub, the war in Ukraine and the Black Sea grain exports during their meeting.
Ankara has sought to persuade Russia to return to the Black Sea Grain Initiative – brokered by Türkiye and the United Nations – that ensured the safe export of Ukrainian grain during the war via the Black Sea. Russia withdrew from the accord in July 2023 and has said it was not interested in reviving it.
Fidan assured Ankara was working with both Ukraine and Russia to revive the accord, likely on a new mechanism to allow Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea.
NATO member Türkiye shares a maritime border with Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea and has aimed to maintain good ties with both amid the war. It has voiced support for Ukraine's territorial integrity while opposing the sanctions on Russia.
Erdoğan and Putin last met in the Russian city of Sochi in September.
Separately, Peskov informed Putin would discuss the planned gas hub in Türkiye, an idea he first floated in 2022 as part of Russia's efforts to reroute its gas exports after a sharp fall in its shipments to Europe as a result of the Ukraine war.
Russia is a top energy supplier for Türkiye.
Elsewhere, Ankara and Moscow have a variety of policy differences regarding regional conflicts in Syria, Libya and the Southern Caucasus.
