Erdoğan speaks with Zelensky ahead of Trump-Putin talks

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan exchanged a phone conversation with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky on Aug. 12, Türkiye's Communication Directorate has announced, days before the U.S. and Russian leaders are set to hold key talks on the Ukraine war in Alaska.

According to the statement, the call was initiated by the Ukrainian side and addressed bilateral ties as well regional and global issues.

Recalling that the Russian and Ukrainian delegations held three rounds of talks in Istanbul with advances on some issues, Erdoğan expressed his wish that next rounds will produce meaningful results towards a permanent peace agreement.

He also reiterated Ankara’s readiness to host a summit at the leaders’ level for ending the war also stressing that establishing working groups on military, political and humanitarian aspects of the process can contribute to the process.

Erdoğan reaffirmed Türkiye’s commitment to supporting Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The Erdoğan-Zelensky conversation came as U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are readying to meet in Alaska on Aug. 15. The first face-to-face meeting between the two men since Trump returned to power will focus on the ways to end the Russian occupation of Ukraine.

Zelensky underlined that Ukraine won’t give any territorial concessions to Russia and sought the support of European nations to this end.

In the meantime, Erdoğan welcomed Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili at the presidential compound on Aug. 15. The two men discussed bilateral issues as well regional developments, particularly the war between Russia and Ukraine and recent signing of a peace declaration between Azerbaijan and Armenia in Washington on Aug. 8.