War in Ukraine: Ankara calls on all parties to respect the Montreux Treaty

THE Turkey calls on all parties involved in war in Ukraine to respect the Treaty of Montreux governing the passage through Narrow to the Black Seaallegedly stated by the Turkish Minister of Defense, Hulusi Akartoday, after Ankara announced yesterday the closure of the Straits.

Turkey, its neighbor Of Ukraine and her Russia in the Black Sea, maintains good relations with both. Under the Montreux Convention (1936), Ankara has the right to restrict passage through the Straits in time of war.. This allows it to block the passage of Russian warships heading to the Black Sea. The Convention allows the exemption for warships returning to their bases.

According to Turkish state media, the Foreign Minister, Mevlüt Tsavousoglustated that Turkey asked all Black Sea countries not to stop crossing the Straits.

“It is not in anyone’s interest to undermine Montreux or disrupt the status quo in any way. We consider it a benefit to preserve Montreux. “We say on all sides that it will be beneficial to respect Montreux,” Hulusi Akar told reporters after yesterday’s cabinet meeting, his ministry announced today.

According to the Athenian-Macedonian News Agency, in a telephone conversation with Mevlüt Çavuşoλουlu yesterday, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken “expressed his satisfaction” with the implementation of the Convention, said Stephen’s spokesperson.

Yoruk Isik, a geopolitical analyst in Ankara and head of the Bosphorus Observer, told Reuters that Turkey closed the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles to all countries. “Well, it did happen, they closed; they closed all navigation, not just Russian ships,” Isik said, adding that the closure of the Straits should be interpreted as a move by Ankara to give Moscow a “break” to define its position. of.

At least four Russian ships are waiting to cross the Straits from the Mediterranean.

At a time when the Russian invasion is an unacceptable violation of international law, Turkey has carefully shaped its rhetoric so as not to upset Moscow, with which Ankara maintains close ties in the fields of energy, defense and tourism. He has called for dialogue and has offered to host “peace talks”.

Late last night, Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks with Belarussian leader Alexander Lukashenko on “ceasefire talks” between Russia and Ukraine on the Belarusian border, his office said.

“We are determined to use the powers of the Montreux Convention in our country to alleviate the crisis,” Erdogan said after the cabinet meeting. “It is certain that we will not undermine our national interests, but we will also not overlook regional and global balances. “For this reason, we can not abandon our ties with Russia or Ukraine.”

Turkey is building close relations with Russia, but has sold drones to Ukraine and signed a co-production agreement with Kyiv, angering Moscow. It is also opposed to Russian policy in Syria and Libya, as well as the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

“It is true that Turkey is making every effort or you can see that it is doing everything not to upset Russia,” Isik said.