The ongoing war in Ukraine poses great economic and security risks to Turkey, with Russian troops controlling large stretches of Ukraine’s Black Sea coast and Turkey’s investments with both Russia and Ukraine already at risk. Due to his close relationship with Vladimir Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has had to navigate Turkey’s foreign policy during the war with extreme caution. On the other hand, the Turkish leader is pursuing a policy of radical pragmatism targeting Kurds in northern Iraq while negotiating with Israel and Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to transport oil and gas to Europe via Turkey.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reiterated Turkey’s position opposing the Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying he was also against any NATO decision violating Russia’s territorial integrity.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan will tell his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Sunday to stop the invasion of Ukraine, an Erdogan spokesman said, while adding that it was naive to expect talks between Moscow and Kyiv to yield results while fighting rages.