Türkiye to discuss Black Sea security, no Russian representatives expected

A meeting will be held in Turkey on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 15-16, to discuss the issue of Black Sea security after a possible ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia, and there will be no representatives from Russia, the Turkish Defense Ministry said, UNN writes with reference to Anadolu.

Details

At this meeting, at the Navy headquarters in the capital Ankara, with the participation of military representatives of foreign countries, naval plans to support a peaceful environment in the Black Sea will be discussed, the ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

"Without specifying which countries will participate, the ministry said that there will be no Russian officials among the foreign military representatives," the publication writes.

Addition

Turkey, as indicated, continues its efforts to end the Russian-Ukrainian war, which began in February 2022. Ankara has called on Kyiv and Moscow to end hostilities through negotiations, and "Turkey is ready for any initiative, including mediation, to lay the foundation for peace."

Turkey, as the publication notes, first held a meeting of foreign ministers of Russia and Ukraine in the Mediterranean city of Antalya in March 2022. These efforts led to the landmark Black Sea Grain Agreement in 2022, but Moscow did not extend the agreement after July 2023, citing restrictions on Russian grain exports.

Earlier, CNN Türk, citing sources, reported that allegedly Russian and Ukrainian officials will meet in Ankara on April 15-16 to discuss security issues in the Black Sea. However, later TV presenter Alla Mazur, referring to the comment of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andriy Sybiha, stated that the reports of Turkish media about the allegedly planned direct negotiations between Ukraine and Russia in Ankara on April 15-16 regarding security in the Black Sea are not true.