Putin Says Turkey Good Partner, Does Not Need Moscow's Mediation In Argument With France

Putin Says Turkey Good Partner, Does Not Need Moscow's Mediation in Argument With France

Turkey is a good partner for Russia and does not need Moscow's mediation in its argument with France, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday, regarding the disagreement over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd October, 2020) Turkey is a good partner for Russia and does not need Moscow's mediation in its argument with France, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday, regarding the disagreement over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

"We have never taken advantage of dispute between other states. We have a stable and good - I wouldn't say full-fledged, but promising relationship that has good history. Our cooperation with Turkey is growing, it's our neighbor," Putin said at a session of the Valdai discussion club.

"I don't think that anyone needs our mediation there - Turkey and France are able to adjust their bilateral relationship themselves. Even though president [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan's position looks tough, I know that he, nonetheless, is a flexible person and it's possible to find common ground with him. So I expect the situation there to improve as well," the president said.

Putin was then asked about Erdogan's opinion on the Ottoman Empire and referred the question to the Turkish president himself.

"I don't know what Erdogan thinks about the Ottoman heritage, you'd better ask him about that. I know that our trade [with Turkey] exceeds $20 billion and that Turkey is truly interested in continuing this cooperation. I know that president Erdogan pursues an independent foreign policy despite all the pressure," Putin said.

The president remarked that the two countries were able to do the TurkStream project quickly.

"Erdogan has said that we would implement it, and we did, like in many other areas, such as, for example, defense industry cooperation. Turkey decided that it needs a modern air defense system, and S-400 is the best system in the world, the triumph of the Russian industry. He bought it, like he said. It's not just pleasant to work with such partner. It's also safe," Putin said.

"As regards Turkey's decision not to recognize Crimea as the Russian territory, well, we have our differences, just like on the situation in the South Caucus. Our views are often different ... It's his [Erdogan] consistent position � he doesn't recognize Crimea, he doesn't recognize Nagorno-Karabakh. Well, we need to persistently work with everyone and remain patient, which we do, and prove everyone that our position is right and that we will insist on it, while searching for a compromise where our views are different," Putin said.