Turkish President Erdogan said that Ukraine deserves NATO membership

CNN

Ukraine deserves NATO membership, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan After the talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, he said that Russia is watching closely.

Zelensky has spent this week touring NATO countries to drum up support ahead of next week’s NATO summit in Lithuania, where members are expected to reaffirm Ukraine’s eventual accession.

Undoubtedly, Ukraine deserves to be in NATO, Erdogan said.

During a joint press conference, Zelensky said he was happy to hear that Turkey supports Ukraine’s bid to unify.

Zelensky said during a visit to the Czech Republic this week that Ukraine needs a clear signal that it will be in the alliance. It’s not that the door is open for us, it’s not enough, Ukraine will be in it, he said on Thursday.

There is NATO open door policy, meaning that any country that expresses its interest can be invited to join as long as it is able and willing to uphold the principles of the treaty establishing the alliances. However, under the accession rules, any member state can veto the accession of a new country.

Some allies, esp Those in Eastern Europe Those closer to Ukraine and Russia have favored a more concrete path for Kiev to join the defense alliance after the war ends.

Other officials argue that accelerating Ukraine’s NATO membership could be too provocative, and even if the fighting ends, it could become a very risky gamble for the alliance, especially if Russia still claims Ukrainian territory.

Turkey withdrew its objection to Finland joining NATO earlier this year but continues to block Swedish access.

After Russia launched its attack on Ukraine in February 2022, Erdogan emerged as the main power broker, playing a balancing role between the two sides.

He helped broker the Black Sea grain deal, which unlocked millions of tons of wheat seized during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, averting a global hunger crisis.

The deal is due to expire in ten days, and Erdogan on Saturday expressed his support for its extension, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Turkey next month.

We listened to Ukraine, especially in the exchange of prisoners. We also listen to Russia. I spoke with Mr. Putin, Erdogan said that we will be able to talk about this again when Mr. Putin visits Turkey next month. We’ll talk about it on the phone until then. Prisoner exchange is also on our agenda. We hope that a solution will be found in this matter as well.

Speaking alongside the Turkish president, Zelensky said that the Black Sea should not be a frozen conflict, but a security area.

It is very important that we, like Mr. President, start working with our partners to ensure the existence of the grain corridor and therefore the lives of other people. [Erdogan] Zelensky said on Saturday that it doesn’t matter what mood the president of the Russian Federation wakes up in on other continents (including Africa and Asia).

This comes after the Kremlin said it would closely monitor talks between Ukraine and Turkey.

Of course, we will follow the results of these negotiations very carefully. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that we continue our constructive, partnership relations with Ankara, and we value these relations and feel the reciprocity of the Turkish side. It will be interesting for us to know what will be discussed between Mr. Erdogan and Mr. Zelensky. It is important.

Peskov later complemented Erdogan for acting as a mediator between Moscow and Kiev, saying that Putin and Erdogan communicate regularly.