The spread of the Russia-Ukraine war to the Black Sea, threatening the lives of citizens and the activities of companies, is unacceptable.
Modern.az reports that this was stated by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan at a joint press conference with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov.
The minister said that they discussed the Russia-Ukraine war, which has been ongoing for more than four and a half years, and its impact on the region with the Azerbaijani side.
“As the fighting continues uninterrupted, civilian casualties and destruction increase every day. The escalation in the war also seriously affects the Black Sea basin. Since the beginning of the crisis, we have made great efforts to keep the Black Sea out of the conflict,” Hakan Fidan said.
According to him, Turkey's careful application of the Montreux Convention on the Straits and the implementation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative allowed this goal to be achieved for a certain period.
“However, in recent months, increasing attacks against civilian ships in the Black Sea are causing serious damage to human lives, property, maritime transport, and environmental safety. Unfortunately, sailors who are citizens of Turkey and Azerbaijan have also lost their lives in these attacks,” the minister noted.
Hakan Fidan offered condolences to the families of the deceased sailors and stated that the necessary warnings had been given to the parties.
“The spread of the war to the Black Sea, threatening the lives of our citizens and the activities of our companies, is unacceptable. If political will is shown and good intentions are acted upon, common ground for agreement can be found. For this, we have increased our efforts recently,” he said.
The Turkish Foreign Minister emphasized that his country will continue its peace initiatives:
“As our President stated from the beginning, even the worst peace is better than war itself. Turkey will continue to make all its efforts for peace.”
