Senior adviser to President Kılıç: Erdogan is the only leader who has a positive relationship with Putin
The president’s senior adviser, Ambassador Akif Çağatay Kılıç, spoke to CNN International, especially about the Grain Agreement and relations with Russia, while President Erdoğan was in the United Arab Emirates as part of his Gulf tour.
Stating that the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement has expired and the teams are working on it, Kılıç said that Erdoğan is very interested in the issue and they will try to reach an agreement.
Expressing that different parties are involved in the issue and that Turkey will do its part, Kılıç said that they will work on what can be done about it after President Erdoğan completes the Gulf tour.
Regarding the statements that Putin will visit Turkey in August, the Kremlin has not yet approved it.
Asked what Putin’s possible demands could be regarding the continuation of the Grain Corridor Agreement, Kılıç said: “According to what we have learned from our interlocutors, our partners and the Russian side, there are some issues that (Russia) is not satisfied with. They refer to unfulfilled commitments under the Grains Agreement. We should work on these. It is abundantly clear that this is a deal for the unfortunate parts of the world. There will be countries that depend on the grain that will come out of this agreement, we will work on it”. he replied he in the form.
“THEY HAVE AN OPEN, TRANSPARENT AND POSITIVE RELATIONSHIP”
Addressing questions about the impact of Turkey’s positive attitude towards Sweden’s NATO membership on Turkish-Russian relations, Kılıç stressed that this decision did not negatively affect relations with Russia, saying: “Turkey, as a NATO member, was very open in its relations with Russia. President Erdogan is the only NATO alliance leader to bring this issue to the United States and maintains an open, transparent and positive relationship with President Putin. Putin himself stated that he has a very open and transparent relationship with President Erdogan ”. saying.
Kılıç stressed that Turkey is always on the front line and takes events in its own region and neighboring regions very seriously, adding that the war in Ukraine is also very close to Turkey and the region, so they work very closely with all parties there.
“Türkiye AND RUSSIA ARE IN CONTINUOUS COMMUNICATION”
Regarding the effect of sending the commanders of the Azov Battalion, who were included in the Russia-Ukraine prisoner exchange and were in Turkey for security purposes, to Ukraine on Turkey-Russia relations, Kılıç said: “Our foreign ministers and intelligence services are always in communication with each other. Our Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was recently appointed Foreign Minister and is in communication with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. I know that our intelligence services are also communicating. I don’t think there is a conflict as has been said (between the two countries). But of course, problems can arise in the process. It may or may not change. But to be honest, I don’t know anything about it.” He used the statements from him.
Noting that the NATO Summit and the Azov commanders’ issues cannot affect Turkey’s bargaining power with Putin, Kılıç said: “At the end of the day, it will be Putin’s decision to go ahead with the Grain Deal or not. But there are other partners as well, including the United Nations. When we look at it, there is an agreement and as I mentioned before, President Erdogan is interested in the issue. This is also a matter not only for Turkey, but also for the international community and the parties to the agreement.” he commented. (AA)