Turkish and Ukrainian leaders, together with UN secretary general, examine “possible ways to end the war”
Judging by the brevity of Thursday’s meeting in Lviv between the Ukrainian and Turkish presidents, Volodímir Zelensky and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, which lasted just 40 minutes, the lack of an immediate statement about what was agreed and the gloomy faces of the three, it seems that no progress has been made towards resuming ceasefire negotiations in Ukraine, which have been frozen since late March.
According to the Russian newspaper ‘Kommersant’, Erdogan has proposed to his Ukrainian counterpart to organize a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, something Kiev has been unsuccessfully requesting since the start of the war. According to information from the Russian newspaper, the idea is that Moscow and Kiev draw up a “road map” to cessation of hostilities and “reconciliation”.
‘Kommersant’ quotes ‘CNN Turk’ television as pointing out that ‘even if no final peace is reached in Ukraine, at least a ceasefire can be reached’. Russian channel ‘NTV’ exactly underlines Erdogan’s intention to reach a “temporary” ceasefire and act as a mediator for a prisoner exchange. Erdogan stated “the possible ways to end the war” after the talks he analyzed with Zelenski and Guterres. In his words, it is necessary to “use the positive atmosphere that has arisen after the agreement for the export of grain in order to achieve a lasting peace”.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, also present in Lviv, has reiterated on several occasions that the Ukrainian grain export agreement reached in Istanbul on July 22 could be the starting mechanism for a ceasefire in Ukraine as well. to get fire. However, Zelensky himself and his advisers have repeated ad nauseam that they will not accept the “freezing” of the conflict so that the Russian military can regain strength, nor will they conduct negotiations as long as Russia, in addition to stopping the war, withdraws its troops did not return to positions before February 24, when Putin launched a so-called “special military operation.”
But Turkey believes there will be no peace without Moscow’s approval. “The international community cannot end the war in Ukraine by ignoring Russia,” warned Fahrettin Altun, one of Erdogan’s top advisers, in Sochi on August 5, the day Putin and Erdogan held their last summit.
The talks on Thursday took place at the Potocki Palace in Lviv, where Erdogan arrived by car from Poland. He first met Zelensky alone, and then Guterres joined them. Earlier, the Ukrainian president raised with the UN Secretary-General the need to create security conditions for the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, owned by Russian forces and under constant attacks that Kiev and Moscow blame each other.
They also spoke, according to a United Nations source, about the decline in Ukrainian grain exports from the ports on the Black Sea, about the explosion at a prison in Olenivka (Donetsk) that killed Ukrainian POWs held there at the end of July and about a possible general exchange of prisoners. According to Zelensky, “Turkish President’s visit to Ukraine is a strong statement of support coming from such a powerful country.” “As we continue our efforts to find a solution, we remain on the side of our Ukrainian friends,” the Turkish president said.
This is Erdogan’s first visit to Ukraine since the start of the war. His previous voyage took place on February 3, three weeks before the start of the Russian invasion. The Turkish leader has proposed to come to an end in his mediation work between Moscow and Kiev.
On the eve of the trilateral meeting in Lviv, new Russian missile strikes caused death in northeastern Ukraine. At least 12 dead, including a child, and nearly 40 injured, caused the rocket attacks launched Wednesday night and this Thursday morning against Kharkov and the nearby city of Krasnograd.
Source: La Verdad
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