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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday (April 28th) that Ankara is ready to do more to end the war in Ukraine after helping organize an exchange of Russian-American prisoners. .
Erdogan’s office said Putin “thanked” the Turkish leader in a phone call for help in exchanging former Marine Trevor Reed for former Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko.
The exchange took place in Turkey “under the coordination and supervision of the National Intelligence Organization,” Erdogan’s office said.
Ankara has said it is now “ready to take the initiative to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and mediate a path to peace.”
The Kremlin confirmed that Putin “expressed his gratitude to the Turkish leader” for helping in the historic exchange of the 30-year-old American with the 53-year-old Russian.
Reed was jailed in Russia in 2020 and sentenced to nine years in prison for allegedly assaulting drunk police officers.
Yaroshenko has been serving a 20-year sentence since 2011 after being convicted of drug smuggling.
Turkey’s role in the exchange underscores the NATO member’s ability to maintain an open dialogue with Moscow in the midst of the Ukraine crisis.
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also said Wednesday that Washington was “grateful to Turkey for its role in the safe return of American Reed.”
Turkey hosted a meeting between Moscow and Kiev negotiators in Istanbul and another between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba in Antalya last month.
Erdogan is now trying to pave the way for an Istanbul summit between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
He told Putin on Thursday that Turkey wanted to “establish a lasting peace in the region as soon as possible by increasing the momentum gained in the Istanbul talks,” his office said.
The Kremlin only said that Putin and Erdogan agreed to maintain “further contacts.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
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