Russia will only welcome efforts if Turkish partners can encourage Ukraine to implement the Minsk Protocol, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.
Commenting on the proposal by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to organize a meeting between Russian and Ukrainian leaders, Peskov said Russia welcomes the efforts of any country that aims to resolve the situation in Ukraine.
"We welcome the efforts of any countries that can help resolve the situation in Ukraine. The main disagreements between Russia and Ukraine are connected precisely with the stalling of the implementation of the Minsk agreements by Kyiv.
"If our Turkish partners can influence Ukrainians and encourage them to fulfill their earlier agreements and commitments, this will be welcome," the spokesperson told reporters at a daily briefing in Moscow.
Peskov added that the place where the contact between Russia and Ukraine is establ is "secondary" and the main thing is "to influence Ukraine."
The spokesperson called the situation in Ukraine "very tense," claiming the escalation is happening because of the West's military support to Ukraine.
"As for the tense situation in Ukraine, it is really very, very tense. We see arms deliveries there, we see various maneuvers, we see flights of military aviation of NATO and Western European countries. This all leads to the escalation around Ukraine," he said.
On Tuesday, Turkish Presidential Spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin said Erdoğan invited Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Turkey to "settle differences" between the two countries. He also said Erdoğan will go to Ukraine in the next few weeks for talks with Zelensky.
