site.btaTurkiye Remains Ready to Organise Peace Summit between Russia and Ukraine, Turkish President Erdogan Says

Turkiye remains ready to organise and hold a peace summit between Russia and Ukraine, said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in Istanbul, Turkish media reported.

"Unfortunately, our diplomatic initiative, undertaken in 2022 in Istanbul, did not bear fruit. The war between Ukraine and Russia must end through negotiations. We are ready to hold a peace summit, in which Russia will also participate," he said, as quoted by state-run TRT-Haber television.

The presidents of Turkiye and Ukraine met in Istanbul Friday. The meeting started at around 19:30 Turkish time (18:30 Bulgarian time) at the Dolmabahce Palace. The meeting of the two leaders lasted about an hour and a half, Turkish NTV television reported.

Erdogan also said today that he had discussed the grain deal and the security situation in the Black Sea with Zelensky. 

"We discussed in detail the issues related to the ongoing war. Within the framework of our strategic partnership, we will continue to support Ukraine, its territorial integrity. We are ready to help its reconstruction. We also discussed the security situation in the Black Sea and the grain agreements, which have made a great contribution to food security and have allowed millions of tonnes of grain to be delivered to countries in need," Erdogan said.