Turkey is concerned about the escalating situation in eastern Ukraine and supports a peaceful end to tension between Russia and Ukraine while respecting Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
This was said in Turkish Defence Minister Houlusi Akar’s statement on 13 April, reports a Ukrinform correspondent.
The Minister said that Turkey is in favour of de-escalation of the situation in eastern Ukraine and in particular stated:
“Ukraine is our strategic ally. We’re very worried about their future. We, as a state, have made our statements about their safety, we want them to live in peace with respect for their territorial integrity. We said we don’t recognize the occupation of Crimea. We said we are closely monitoring the existence of the Crimean Tatars there and their future.”
“As we have always said, we are in favor of a peaceful end to the tension between Russia and Ukraine, respecting territorial integrity under international law,” Turkish Defence Minister Houlusi Akar said.
