Quotes
We have to ask ourselves, is it in our national interest? Is it realistic? We’ve talked to the Europeans about this, and the Ukrainians. Are we going to drive every Russian off of every inch of Ukrainian soil, including Crimea?"
We can talk about what’s right and wrong. And we also have to talk about the reality of the situation on the ground. And that’s what we are doing through diplomacy, through shuttle diplomacy, through proximity talks,
For Ukraine, there are red lines – including that there can be no restrictions on the size of the defence forces and no prohibitions on Ukraine’s participation in international organisations, including the EU and NATO. The issue of NATO was also mentioned by [Head of the Ukrainian President’s Office Andrii] Yermak, who stressed that Russia must not have a veto,
It is not reasonable to demand that, for example, Zaporizhzhia or Kherson [oblasts - ed.] be fully handed over,
We will do our best to retake it with diplomacy,
On the anniversary of the annexation of Ukraine’s Autonomous Republic of Crimea by the Russian Federation through an illegitimate referendum 11 years ago today, we reiterate that Türkiye does not recognize the de facto situation in Crimea, which constitutes a violation of international law, and that we support the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine,
read a written statement by the Turkish Foreign Ministry on March 16. We will continue to closely monitor developments in Crimea, particularly the situation of the Crimean Tatar Turks, the indigenous people of the peninsula, and we will keep them on the agenda of the international community,