The Turkish Foreign Minister in Ukraine to seek a ceasefire

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu arrived in Ukraine on Thursday, where he held talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba as diplomatic efforts to stop the three-week war accelerated.

Speaking at a press conference with Kuleba, in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, Çavuşoğlu said he hoped to reach a humanitarian ceasefire in the coastal city of Mariupol, which is under siege by Russian forces.

He added that 100 Turkish citizens were still stuck in the city.

The Turkish Foreign Minister proposed a 24-hour ceasefire in Mariupol, monitored by humanitarian organizations. “Our hope for a ceasefire is growing after our visit to Russia and Ukraine”, he said.

Çavuşoğlu stated that Kyiv had proposed that Turkey be one of the guarantors of the agreement, and Russia had not objected.

He said that there was a possibility that the two leaders would meet (the Presidents of Ukraine and Russia), if there was a basis for agreement on issues of convergence.

For his part, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister welcomed his Turkish counterpart, expressing his thanks for Ankara’s solidarity and political and humanitarian support.

He commended Turkey’s continued diplomatic efforts to end the devastating war in Ukraine.

In conjunction with the visit, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a phone call.

No further details of the phone call were available.