Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Russia's attack on Ukraine is "unacceptable," but his country will not turn its back on either state, with Ankara having strong relations with both Moscow and Kyiv.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting on February 28, Erdogan said Turkey, a NATO member, would honor its commitments to the alliance, though it also could not disregard its "national interests" in the region.
He added that Turkey, which shares a maritime border with both Ukraine and Russia and has good ties with each country, would implement a long-standing international naval pact to prevent an escalation of the war.
The 1936 Montreux Convention gives Turkey the right to bar warships from using the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus during wartime. Ukraine earlier asked Ankara to implement the treaty and bar access to Russian warships.
“Turkey is determined to use the authority given by the Montreux Convention on Turkish Straits in a manner to prevent escalation of the Russia-Ukraine crisis,” Erdogan said.
Ankara has forged close ties with Russia in the energy and defense sectors, but has also sold drones to Ukraine and, despite raising Moscow's ire, signed a deal to co-produce more.