Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, the capital of Russia. Speaking before the meeting, Minister Çavuşoğlu said, “I am making this visit at a time when we are facing many challenges. In times challenges, dialogue and diplomacy are more important.” Addressing the recent meeting of Ukrainian and Russian Foreign Ministers in Turkey’s Antalya, Çavuşoğlu said, “I would like to thank you once again for coming to Antalya and participating in the tripartite meeting.”
Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said, “We met with you before at the Diplomacy Forum in Antalya. The fact that we are meeting again after a period reveals once again how important our bilateral dialogue and coordination is. This meeting is very important, especially when the international agenda is changing rapidly. Both today’s meeting and the talks held at other levels have a symbolic meaning. 101 years ago, on March 16, 1921, a friendship and brotherhood agreement was signed between the Soviet Union and the Turkish Grand National Assembly. The most important issue we have to discuss today is the Ukraine issue. We have some differences of opinion regarding Ukraine. We do not hide this from anyone. We still try to take a consistent stance in line with the needs and demands of today’s conditions. Turkey’s balanced stance on this issue is very important to us. We also attach great importance to Ankara’s fulfillment of the requirements of the Montreux Convention. In addition to the Ukraine issue, we will also exchange views on issues such as Syria, Libya and Afghanistan. Our dual agenda is very busy. We will discuss the agenda and dates of the 9th High Level Business Council Meeting to be held in Turkey at the next meeting on the bilateral agenda.”