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Turkey seeks to host Minsk group meetings, Foreign Ministry source says

It is mentioned that both Ukraine and Russia are allegedly positive about Turkey’s willingness to be a mediator

ANKARA, January 20./TASS/. Turkey wants to organize meetings of the Minsk group with the participation of Russia, Ukraine, the OSCE, and representatives from Donbass, a source from the Turkish Foreign Ministry told journalists on Thursday.

"Negotiations continue on arranging a meeting in this format in Istanbul, the date has not been determined as of yet," the source said. However, according to the source, allegedly both Ukraine and Russia are positive about Turkey’s willingness to be a mediator. "Our position is clear, we want to scale down tensions, prevent a conflict, and strengthen a dialogue," the source added.

On Wednesday, Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, announced that Erdogan had invited the Russian and Ukrainian presidents, Vladimir Putin and Vladimir Zelensky, to Turkey in order to "settle disputes" between the two countries. According to the spokesman, "Erdogan will depart for Ukraine in the upcoming weeks for negotiations with Zelensky."

The Turkish president repeatedly stated his desire to take part in the settlement of the crisis between Russia and Ukraine. During phone negotiations in December 2021, Putin pointed out to Erdogan that Ukraine continued its destructive policy, aiming to undermine the Minsk Agreements.

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Ukraine crisis Ukraine Turkey

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