Turkey Turns Mediator As Antalya Hosts Foreign Ministers Of Ukraine And Russia

Ukraine foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov will head two delegations which will meet in Turkey on Thursday. Turkish news agency Daily Sabah in a report said that the talks will be held in a trilateral format with Turkey opting to mediate between both nations.

Turkish foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu earlier said that both nations would hold a meeting on March 10. The nation sought a meeting between both leaders on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum. “If he flies to Antalya, then I’ll fly too. Let’s sit down, let’s talk. (But if Lavrov) starts repeating the absurd propaganda that has been dished out lately, I’ll give him the hard truth he deserves,” Kuleba was quoted as saying by the Daily Sabah.

Kuleba said that he is also open to Russian president Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky holding direct talks, something Prime Minister Narendra Modi also urged while holding telephone conversation with both leaders.

The Ukrainian and Russian sides have met on three occasions but barring opening of humanitarian corridors no agreement could be agreed upon by both sides. The Russians responded to the humanitarian corridors proposal and have opened corridors allowing civilians to flee the conflict-ridden cities. Though the routes have been subject to debate among both sides, evacuation of civilians and foreign citizens including students have taken place.

Ukraine showed signs of backtracking from its stance of joining NATO and its president Zelensky said that he is ready to discuss the status of Donbass and Crimea. “I have cooled down regarding this question a long time ago after we understood that NATO is not prepared to accept Ukraine. (Donetsk and Luhansk) have not been recognized by anyone but Russia, these pseudo republics. But we can discuss and find a compromise on how these territories will live on,” Zelensky told US-based news agency ABC in an interview.

Ahead of the expected meeting between Kuleba and Lavrov, Turkey hopes that Antalya will emerge as a turning point in this conflict.

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