In his video message to the Ukraine-South East Europe Summit, President Erdoğan called for negotiations and said, “We are also ready to re-establish the negotiation table that we have previously established in Istanbul for the construction of peace.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sent a video message to the Ukraine-South East Europe Summit. “I maintain my view that diplomacy and dialogue should be given a chance to end the war with a just and lasting peace,” Erdoğan said on the Russia-Ukraine war, calling for negotiations, adding, “We are also ready to re-establish the negotiation table we have previously established in Istanbul for the construction of peace.”
The highlights of Erdoğan’s speech are as follows:
“WE WILL RE-ESTABLISH THE NEGOTIATION TABLE IN ISTANBUL”
I believe that bringing both sides together is essential for peace initiatives to succeed. We are also ready to re-establish the negotiating table that we have already set up in Istanbul to build peace.
I remain of the view that diplomacy and dialogue should be given a chance to end the war with a just and lasting peace. At the very least, I believe that a joint work should start on defining the general parameters of peace. We are also making every effort to protect the rights and interests of our Crimean Tatar compatriots. We are also ready to contribute to the rapid recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine.
“THERE IS A NEED FOR REGULATION FOR COMMERCIAL VESSELS IN THE BLACK SEA”
We support Mr. Zelensky’s 10-point peace plan in principle and we have assumed a leadership role in the work to be carried out in the food security section of the plan. The Black Sea initiative, which was established with our efforts and played a critical role during its implementation, remains on our agenda. There is also a need for an arrangement to ensure safety of navigation for commercial vessels in the Black Sea. In this context, in cooperation with the United Nations, we are continuing our contacts for a new regulation that will include security commitments in the Black Sea.
On the other hand, we are also ready to re-establish the negotiation table we have already established in Istanbul for peace building. On this occasion, I wish that the spirit of solidarity that has come to life in our common geography, the Balkans, with the cooperation process of the Southeast European countries will also spread to our nearby geography.
