Turkey Calls for Humanitarian Truce to Evacuate Civilians from Ukraine

World

February 28th, 7:07am

Ankara - Saeed Abdulrazek

Russian Navy's diesel-electric submarine Rostov-on-Don sails in the Bosphorus, on its way to the Black Sea, in Istanbul, Turkey February 13, 2022. REUTERS/Yoruk Isik

Turkey on Sunday requested from Russia and Ukraine a humanitarian truce that would allow Ankara and other countries to evacuate their citizens from Ukrainian combat zones. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu spoke by phone Sunday with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and Ukraine’s Dmytro Kuleba on the latest developments in Ukraine. He mainly requested a possible cease-fire and discussed the humanitarian situation, including the evacuation of civilians, according to a briefing by the Foreign Ministry. Meanwhile, Ankara renewed its calls for Russia to end its attacks on Ukraine and start negotiations. “On the fourth day of the Ukraine war, we repeat President (Recep Tayyip) Erdogan’s call for an immediate halt of Russian attacks and the start of ceasefire negotiations. We will continue our efforts to help the people of Ukraine and end bloodshed in this unjust and unlawful war,” presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin said on Twitter. Ankara then stressed that the two straits of Bosporus and Dardanelles are still open to Russian ships and that it has not changed its decision to implement the 1936 Montreux Convention, which allows Turkey the power to regulate the transit of naval warships in the Black Sea through the two straits. In a television interview, Cavusoglu said that Article 19 of the Convention is clear concerning allowing the warships of littoral states to return to their base. He added, “It is not a couple of airstrikes now, the situation in Ukraine is officially a war… We will implement the Montreux Convention.” Meanwhile, the Coastal Safety Istanbul Office directory said on Sunday that the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits are still open to Russian ships, and that it did not receive any government decision to the contrary. Late on Saturday, Zelensky thanked the Turkish President for banning passage of Russian warships to the Black Sea. “The ban on the passage of Russian warships to the Black Sea and significant military and humanitarian support for Ukraine are extremely important today,” Zelensky tweeted. But Turkish officials said Ankara is still assessing its position on closing the straits to Russian ships, pointing out that Zelensky’s message on Twitter was misinterpreted.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3501746/turkey-calls-humanitarian-truce-evacuate-civilians-ukraine