Turkey cannot prevent Russian warships from accessing the Black Sea through its straits, as Ukraine has requested, due to a clause in an international pact that allows ships to return to their base, the Turkish foreign minister said on Friday. thursday (25th).
Ukraine has appealed to Turkey to stop Russian warships from passing through the Dardanelles and Bosphorus straits, which lead to the Black Sea, after Moscow on Thursday launched an all-out attack on Ukraine by land, air and sea. Follow the special coverage of CNN.
Russian forces landed at Ukraine’s Black Sea and Azov ports as part of the invasion.
Under the 1936 Montreux Convention, Turkey has control over the straits and can limit the passage of warships during wartime or under threat, but the request put the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member in a position difficult as the country tries to manage its Western commitments and strengthen ties with Russia.
Speaking in Kazakhstan, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Turkey was studying Kiev’s request but said Russia had the right under the Convention to return the ships to their base, in this case the Black Sea.
So even if Turkey decided, after legal process, to accept Ukraine’s request and close the strait to Russian warships, he said, they would only be prevented from traveling in the other direction, away from their Mediterranean base.
“If the countries involved in the war make a request to return their ships to their bases, this needs to be allowed,” Cavusoglu told Hurriyet newspaper.
Cavusoglu added that Turkish legal experts are still trying to determine whether the conflict in Ukraine can be defined as a war, which would allow the convention’s mandates to be invoked.
Ukraine’s ambassador to Turkey, Vasyl Bodnar, said on Friday that Kiev expects a “positive response” from Ankara to its request.
Cavusoglu also reiterated Ankara’s opposition to the imposition of economic sanctions against Russia, a stance that has set Turkey apart from most of its NATO allies that have already announced such measures.
Turkey has cultivated good ties with Russia and Ukraine. He said the Russian attack was unacceptable and that he supported Ukraine’s territorial integrity, but avoided using words like “invasion” to describe what was happening.
Ankara has sought cooperation with Moscow on defense and energy, but has also sold drones to Ukraine and signed an agreement to co-produce more. It also opposes Russian policies in Syria and Libya, as well as the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Source: CNN Brasil
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