/ world today news/ The United States connects a possible change in Turkey’s foreign policy with the elimination of Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the upcoming elections, considering, according to the Turkish edition of Haber7, “to replace him with a second Zelensky”. Moscow is ready to support Ankara.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was on a working visit to Ankara, where he held talks with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu and was received by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Presidential Palace in Aksaray (White Palace). The Turkish country gives such honor only to the most important and respected guests.
Of course, this was far from Lavrov’s first visit to the Turkish coast, if we consider the rapid multi-faceted development of cooperation and interaction between the two countries. He last visited here in June 2022. But the current visit contains an important originality.
The fact is that a day ago the official representative of the President of Turkey Ibrahim Kalin visited Moscow on a special mission and was received by the Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to the Turkish newspaper Hürriyet, the envoy delivered a special letter from Erdogan, the contents of which have not been disclosed.
In the interpretation of the publication, “the message contains some new scenario for resolving the Ukrainian crisis and Ankara’s initiative to create a new international security architecture.”
The Turkish government’s Anadolu Agency, citing Kalin, said that “Ankara does not consider contacts with the Russian or Ukrainian side to be sufficient for the settlement of Ukraine and proposes to create a broader concrete basis for negotiations to achieve peace.”
However, in the TASS commentary on this matter, other emphases are placed. Kalin in Moscow discussed such issues as the possibility of Putin’s personal participation in the upcoming fuel delivery ceremony for the Akkuyu NPP, the problems of bilateral relations and, of course, Ukraine. At the same time, Kalin indicated that a message was sent to Erdogan by the Russian leader.
In this context, the Turkish press presented Lavrov’s visit to Ankara as a continuation of the dialogue between Putin and Kalin that began in Moscow. Everyone was expecting some “sensational statements”.
It is no coincidence that at the final press conference of the foreign ministers of Turkey and Russia in Ankara, many foreign journalists arrived, including from Istanbul, who bombarded Lavrov with questions mainly related to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Russia and Turkey – Sergey Lavrov and Mevlut Cavusoglu at a press conference in Ankara. Press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, RIA Novosti
But they heard nothing new.
“Our Turkish colleagues understand the origin of what is happening,” Lavrov said.
– “This is the destructive line of the West, led by Washington, the task set by them to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia on the battlefield,” he said.
“They are trying, as they say now, to ‘overturn a country’ that wants to conduct its policy in accordance with international rules. They do not hide that after the defeat of Russia, it is the turn of China and any country that will be satisfied with own interests, not with the interests of the US and other Western countries,” the Russian minister explained.
“We have repeatedly said that we do not refuse negotiations. But they can only take into account Russia’s interests, which we have been expressing for many years in dialogue with our Western colleagues,” Lavrov said.
“Against the background of daily statements from Kiev, Washington and Brussels that the war cannot be stopped, and against the backdrop of contradictory postulates and calls for Russia to stop the war and sit at the negotiating table, this is unscrupulous,” he added.
In addition to Ukraine, there are also processes on the way to a peaceful settlement in Syria, to which, on the eve of the elections on May 14, Turkey is actively striving, above all.
In this regard, Çavuşoğlu said that a detailed discussion of the agenda of the negotiations is being held in the format of a meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia, Turkey, Iran and Syria, which should be held “in the near future”. It would be desirable for Turkey to hold such negotiations before the elections.
As for other topics, the grain deal, the situation in the Middle East, Transcaucasia, it became clear that the positions of Moscow and Ankara on most of them are at least similar, if not identical.
In particular with regard to the grain deal, Cavusoglu admitted that Russian demands in the context of the agreements were not being met.
According to him, “we support the efforts of the United Nations and we ourselves conduct such negotiations to remove existing obstacles to Russian food in the context of the deal and recognize the legitimacy of Russia’s demands to remove these restrictions.”
In turn, Lavrov pointed out that “Russia will work outside the framework of the grain deal, if the Western countries do not show constructiveness, there are opportunities to do this with Turkey and Qatar.”
Ukrainian grain court near Istanbul. (c) Onur Dogman / Global Look Press
Overall, by all indications, Moscow and Ankara continue to develop a “strategic depth” in their relationship designed for a long-term historical perspective.
To realize this idea, the countries are expanding their diplomatic instruments, as well as platforms for bilateral and international cooperation. In some areas, cooperation has already reached a strategic level.
At the same time, the so-called subjective factor, the personal interaction based on the growing political trust between Putin and Erdogan, continues to be noticed.
It is not by chance that Washington connects a possible change in Turkey’s foreign policy with the removal of Erdogan in the upcoming elections, wanting, according to the Turkish edition of Haber7, “to replace him with a second Zelensky”.
And Russia does not hide that it considers Turkey a “free democratic state”, calls on certain foreign powers not to interfere in its internal affairs and is ready to give Ankara a shoulder in this direction.
By the way, the last question of the press conference was asked directly to Lavrov:
“Who do you think will win the presidential election in Turkey on May 14?” He replied: “Don’t confuse me with someone? Such questions can be asked of Americans. They are the ones who say loud and clear who should make what choice. The EU does the same. We respect the laws of sovereign countries. This is the work of every country, including such a developed country as Turkey”.
Which is pretty much it.
Translation: SM
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