Turkey has a positive outlook on the prospect of providing security guarantees to Ukraine but wants a detailed analysis first, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday
ANKARA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st March, 2022) Turkey has a positive outlook on the prospect of providing security guarantees to Ukraine but wants a detailed analysis first, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday.
"Turkey is ready to become one of the guarantor countries. We see such an initiative as a positive, but a detailed analysis is needed," Erdogan told Turkish journalists upon his return from Uzbekistan.
He also expressed skepticism about Ukraine's prospects of admission to the European Union.
"Because many EU countries, with the exception of some countries, should take this process (Kiev's application to EU) more seriously. At the same time, according to incoming information, the President of the Russian Federation perceived the topic of Ukraine's membership in the EU positively. During the conversation (with Vladimit Putin) I will try to hear it from him personally, which will make it possible to make a clearer analysis," Erdogan said.
The Turkish leader drew attention to the example of Turkey, whose application to join the European Union has been under consideration by Brussels since 1963.
"The EU does nothing but delay the dialogue with Ankara on this issue," Erdogan stated.
Another round of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations was held in Istanbul on March 29. Following the talks, Russian chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said that the talks were constructive, with Moscow following up with an announcement that it will scale down its military activities in the Kiev and Chernihiv regions. Medinsky also said that Kiev demonstrated its will to adopt neutral status under a system of security guarantees from Germany, Canada, Poland, Israel and Turkey, as well as the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, including Russia.
