Turkey does not intend to backtrack on arms deals with Ukraine. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s spokesman said that military cooperation between Ankara and Kyiv is neither directed against Russia nor will it be halted to appease Moscow.
NATO member state Turkey has sold Ukraine, among other things, military drones of the Bayraktar TB2 type. Erdogan will visit the Eastern European country on Thursday. There he is expected to conclude new deals on economic cooperation with his counterpart Volodimir Zelenski.
Zelensky also welcomed leaders from other NATO countries this week. These included British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. Western countries are concerned about a Russian troop build-up on the border with Ukraine. As a result, there is a fear of an invasion.
Turkey has offered to play a mediating role to prevent escalation. The Turks have a relatively good relationship with both Moscow and Kyiv. For example, it annoys other NATO countries that Turkey has purchased a Russian anti-aircraft system. That even led to American sanctions.