Çavuşoğlu: Clearer picture on Ukraine War possible by spring

Türkiye expects to see a clearer picture regarding the cease-fire in the Ukraine war or going back to the negotiation table by spring, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said.

“I think we need to also convince some Western allies to go back to the negotiating table now. Ukraine is advancing on the ground, retaking some of the territories, occupied territories, but Russia in return (is) deliberately targeting civilian infrastructures. So life is getting difficult for the Ukrainians particularly and for us, for all of us,” Çavuşoğlu told the “MED Dialogue Session” of the 8th edition of the Mediterranean Dialogues Conference in Rome.

Emphasizing that there are “more complicated new realities” in the war, Çavuşoğlu said: “I think before the springtime, we will have a clearer picture about a cease-fire, or truce, or (returning to the) negotiating table.”

Since the beginning of the conflict, Ankara has offered to mediate between the two sides and host peace talks, underlining its support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. While Ankara has opposed international sanctions designed to isolate Moscow, it also closed its straits to prevent some Russian vessels from crossing through them.

Türkiye, the United Nations, Russia and Ukraine signed a Turkish-brokered agreement in Istanbul on July 22 to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which paused after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in February.

Asked about Türkiye’s role in NATO and in the security of Europe, Çavuşoğlu stressed that his country has been the main actor in NATO in the fight against terrorism.

“We are the only NATO ally that has been fighting against Daesh actively,” he said, adding that Türkiye has “eliminated more than 4,500 Daesh terrorists” and “deported more than 9,000 foreign terrorist fighters from more than 125 countries.”

“We have been one of the biggest contributors of NATO and we are one of the top five contributors to the NATO missions, NATO activities,” he noted.

But he criticized the European Union for only reaching out to Türkiye “whenever there is a migration crisis.”

“I hope (our) European Union and European friends will understand the importance of Türkiye not only during the crisis, but in general,” he said.

Asked about Türkiye’s normalization efforts with countries like Israel and Egypt, Çavuşoğlu noted the importance of normalization with Israel, but added that such efforts do not mean “that this normalization will be at the cost of (the) Palestinian cause.”

“I think this normalization is mutually beneficial not only between Türkiye and Israel, but also for the region,” he added.

On Egypt, he stressed: “Egypt is an important country for Morocco, for (the) Mediterranean region and for (the) Muslim world, for Africa, for all of us.”

“Our region particularly needs (a) good relationship between Türkiye and Egypt,” he said.

Last month, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shook hands and chatted with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi on the sidelines of the opening of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Diplomatic relations between Türkiye and Egypt have been at the level of charges d’affairs since Egypt’s 2013 military coup, which overthrew President Mohammed Morsi, who later died.