The Turkish president, who is trying to play a mediating role between Russia and Ukraine, has announced progress in the negotiations between the two belligerents. In an interview with Turkish journalists after the NATO summit, in which he participated on Thursday March 25, Recep Tayyip Erdogan evokes a “consensus” in four out of six areas.
With our correspondent in Istanbul, Anne Andlauer
The Turkish president believes that the negotiations are progressing, but remain blocked on two subjects. According to the formula used by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, kyiv and Moscow “ seem to have reached a consensus on four points.
First on the renunciation of theUkraine to integrate NATO and then the recognition of Russian as a “ official language “, the “ demilitarization from Ukraine – a Russian request on which kyiv would be ready for certain “ concessions “, in the absence of complete disarmament – and finally, an agreement of ” collective security for Ukraine, of which Turkey could moreover be one of the guarantors.
No consensus on Crimea and Donbass
Conversely, kyiv and Moscow would not yet be able to agree on the status of Crimea and of Donbasswhere Vladimir Putin demands recognition of the “ sovereignty » Russian. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that any compromise over these territories would have to be ratified by Ukrainians in a referendum.
The Turkish head of state is due to meet this Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and then again by telephone with his Russian counterpart this weekend or early next week. He will invite him, he says, to be a ” peacemaker » and to « make an honorable gesture “, using here a term which can also be understood as a call to the Russian president to “ go out honorably from Ukraine.
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