Erdogan hopes Putin will visit Turkey after trip to China

ANKARA, February 3. /TASS/. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his hope Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin would visit the republic after his trip to China. "Today, we will have a meeting with [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky, and Mr. Putin told us that he will visit Turkey after his visit to China," Erdogan said during a press conference ahead of his departure to Kiev. "It is wrong for us to observe the negative events between Russian and Ukraine. I hope that we will successfully overcome this uneasy period between the two states." Erdogan did not specify the timeframe for the visit. The Turkish leader also noted that Ankara "is closely watching the tensions in the region," and calls on all sides to engage in a dialogue. "We keep saying that we support the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. We invite all sides to a dialogue so that peace can be found in the region. I reiterate that we are ready to contribute to the establishment of the atmosphere of peace and trust in our region," Erdogan added. On January 26, Erdogan announced that he invited Putin to visit the republic. Besides, he expressed his desire to organize a "vis-a-vis" meeting between Putin and Zelensky, so that they could "continue their path on restoration of the atmosphere of peace." Meanwhile, Kremlins spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on January 24 that the Kremlin has no specific information regarding the potential meeting between Putin and his Turkish counterpart. During their phone talks in December 2021, Putin pointed out to Erdogan that Ukraine continues its destructive course that aims to undermine the Minsk Agreements. Read more