Turkey: Ukraine and Russia are close to agreement on <x0-critical issues”

Turkey's Foreign Minister, Mevluut Cavusoglu, said on March 20th that Ukraine and Russia are close to reaching an agreement on “critical issues” and added that he hoped for a ceasefire unless both sides withdraw from the progress reached so far.

Russia began the invasion of Ukraine on February 24th, and Russian President Vladimir Putin called “special military operation”, which, as he said, is aimed at disarming Ukraine and clearing the state of dangerous “nationalists”. But, the West and Ukraine have said Putin has launched an unprohibited war.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, and Russian Minister Sergei Lavrov, met in Antalya, Turkey earlier this month. But discussions have not yet yielded any concrete results.

But, Cavusoglu, who had attended talks between the Russian and Ukrainian top diplomats, told Turkish daily Hurriyet that there had been <x0.odim of the positions of both sides on important topics, for critical themes”.

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Meanwhile, Turkish Presidency spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told television al Jazeera that the two sides have approached positions on four key issues. He cited Russian demands for Ukraine that are to give up ambitions for NATO membership, demilitarisation, what Russia has called “denaziisation” and Russian language protection in Ukraine.

Ukraine and the West have dismissed Russian references to the democratic elected Ukrainian leadership for “neo-Nazi”. Kalin said such references are offensive to Kiev.

Kiev and Moscow have reported that they have made progress during talks last week regarding the formula that would guarantee Ukraine's security, keeping out of NATO.

Kalin said a permanent ceasefire agreement can only be reached at a meeting between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. But, he said Putin thinks the positions in “strategic questions” for Crime and Donbas are not close enough to hold a meeting.

Russia annexed it in 2014 The Ukrainian Crime Peninsula and has supported separatists east of Ukraine in the fight against Ukrainian forces.

Turkey, which shares the maritime border with Ukraine and Russia, has good reports with the two states and is trying to mediate peace talks.

Turkey has voiced support for Ukraine, but has refused to apply Western sanctions on Moscow.