Critical meeting with Russia in Ankara

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu called on Israel to permanently stop its attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque, saying: “Palestine, Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem are our red line and we will never compromise on these issues.” .

After meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Çavuşoğlu spoke at the joint press conference held at the Presidential Complex.

Referring to the four meetings held at the level of deputy foreign ministers between Turkey, Russia, the Assad regime and Iran on April 3-4 in Moscow, the Russian capital, Çavuşoğlu thanked his counterpart Lavrov and the Russian Foreign Ministry for your efforts to organize and prepare this meeting.

Çavuşoğlu stated the following in his assessment of the four-party meeting in Moscow:

“In Moscow, each country expressed its position and views in a transparent and open manner. We believe that this process should continue in the same transparent and open way. We know that not all the issues will be resolved in one meeting, in two meetings, we are realistic, but the dialogue must continue and it would be beneficial to continue the consultations in the same way, intensified”.

‘JERUSALEM OUR RED LINE’

Responding to the question about Israel’s raids on Masjid al-Aqsa, Çavuşoğlu said: “I condemn this attack by Israel that violates the sanctity and historical status quo of the Haram in Ramadan. The treatment of the Israeli police, especially towards Muslims who pray here, it’s unacceptable. It’s inhumane,” he said.

Minister Çavuşoğlu said: “As Turkey, we have started a dialogue with Israel again, but everyone should know that this cannot be at the expense of the Palestinian cause. The issue of Palestine, the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem is always our red line and we will never compromise on these issues,” he said.

LAVROV’S AKKUYU STATEMENT

Speaking about the Akkuyu nuclear power plant, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said: “The construction of this power plant will strengthen Turkey’s energy security. On this occasion, I would like to express that on April 27 we will have sent nuclear energy to the first block of the plant”.

Noting that they discussed key issues of the bilateral and international agenda with Çavuşoğlu, Lavrov said: “A gas center will be established in Turkey. We are establishing a center to send Russian energy resources to the world market. Last year, our heads of state and leaders made a decision on the establishment of this gas center. We better understand how accurate this decision was.”