Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu welcomed the latest round of Russian-Ukrainian peace talks in Istanbul and said Tuesday’s meeting had “made the most significant progress since the talks”.
At a news conference, Cavusoglu said he was pleased to see a growing “rapprochement” between the two sides at “every stage”.
Speaking about the peace talks taking place in the Turkish metropolis, Cavusoglu said: “This is an indicator of the parties’ trust in Turkey.”
He added that “the main priority is to achieve a ceasefire as soon as possible and pave the way for a strong political solution.”
Turkey has been widely praised for its efforts to end the war, fueled by its unique position – friendly relations with both Russia and Ukraine.
On March 10, a meeting of Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers took place in the southern resort town of Antalya.
The new round of talks lasted three hours, and then Russian and Ukrainian negotiators gave separate press conferences to inform the world about the results.
While Ukraine has called on eight countries, including Turkey, to guarantee a possible future peace deal, Russia has said it will significantly reduce its military action against the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Chernihiv to build confidence in future talks.