Ankara (agencies)
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that his country will receive Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today, Thursday, pointing out that Ankara has also extended an official invitation to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba to visit.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart will discuss the crisis in Ukraine, energy cooperation and the Ukrainian grain export agreement through the Black Sea, during a two-day visit by a Russian delegation.
Turkey has presented itself as a possible mediator between Kiev and Moscow in the 13-month-old conflict, brokering the only significant diplomatic achievement so far: a deal facilitating grain exports from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports despite a Russian blockade.
Yesterday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Lavrov and Cavusoglu would use the visit on Thursday and Friday to discuss “the situation in Ukraine,” in addition to consulting on a wide range of regional and international issues.
The ministry added that “the two ministers will exchange views on the current situation of the Ukrainian crisis, and discuss principles and means for a peaceful settlement of the conflict, which is possible only if Kiev takes into account Russian interests and concerns.”
Moscow said Lavrov and Cavusoglu would also discuss the status of the grain deal, which Russia said last month would be extended by 60 days, although the United Nations, Ukraine and Turkey sought to re-extend it by 120 days.
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