The day before, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a statement in which he emphasized the intention of official Ankara to resolve the issue of transporting Ukrainian grain to Africa through the Turkish Bosphorus and Dardanelles, as well as to bring Moscow and Kiev to the negotiating table. According to him, now the Turkish state is “extremely interested” in the speedy restoration of peace in Ukraine. Will Erdogan succeed in a new peacekeeping mission?
It should immediately be clarified: Erdogan made his statement in a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Moreover, according to some reports, this conversation took place precisely on the initiative of the Turkish leader himself. It’s no secret that over the past two years – since Russia unilaterally withdrew from the so-called “grain deal” – Ankara, which allowed ships with raw materials through its straits on favorable terms, not only lost significant financial profits, but also lost a lot of points in the diplomatic arena.
“Restoring reputation in this context is a matter of principle for Turkey today,” Turkish observer Akif Idiz said in a special commentary for EURO-ATLANTIC UKRAINE. “Ankara really has every chance to strengthen its image at the international level, and Erdogan does not intend to lose these chances.” As Idiz noted, in the foreseeable future we should expect another attempt by the head of Turkey to declare himself as a serious player in the geopolitical arena.”
There are no details of the telephone conversation between Erdogan and Putin. And apparently it won’t. Only one thing is known: the main message of the Turkish leader’s speech was an appeal to the West and Russia “to unite to create comfortable conditions for the implementation (or resumption – as you like) of the” grain deal “.
Whether this initiative of Erdogan will be implemented at all is still unclear.
First of all, it is incomprehensible because the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, who has the relevant information, did not react to it. Nothing is reported about Vladimir Putin’s opinion at all.
Be that as it may, Turkey will sooner or later become a participant in peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. The only question that arises is in what capacity.
