Turkish experts urge Moscow not to pay attention to Erdogan’s anti-Russian statements
Turkish political scientists urge Russia not to take to heart the latest statements by the Ankara authorities about non-recognition of elections in Crimea and non-recognition of the “annexation” of the peninsula.
The PolitNavigator correspondent reports this, writes Kommersant, who spoke with Turkish political experts.
“It would be strange if [at the UN] President Erdogan, listing all the world problems that concern him, did not mention Crimea. Turkey is really concerned about the territorial integrity of the states in the region. As for the elections in Crimea, many countries around the world made similar statements. Meanwhile, Moscow and Ankara can always find a common language, and that is why Turkey, unlike other countries, has not yet imposed any sanctions against Russia for Crimea,” noted Togrul Ismail, a professor at Syütçu Imam University in the city of Kahramanmaraş.
In turn, the head of the department of international law at Yeditepe University in Istanbul, Mesut Hakki Jasin, emphasized that, despite its position on Crimea, Turkey is in many ways meeting Moscow halfway.
“Unlike Greece and Bulgaria, Turkey did not provide its airspace to American reconnaissance aircraft and drones that flew over the Black Sea, Crimea and the conflict zone in Donbass. Türkiye respects Russia's interests in the Black Sea. And the Bayraktar drones sold to Ukraine should not be considered a threat to Russia - everything was done within the framework of international laws.” – the expert assures.
According to him, the presidents of Russia and Turkey will be able to discuss all misunderstandings in Sochi. He also added that Russian and Turkish soldiers are “fighting terrorism shoulder to shoulder in Syria, and little is said about this.”
True, Russian International Affairs Council expert Kirill Semenov believes that it was the disagreements over Syria that forced Ankara to speak out harshly on the topic of Crimea.
“Turkey is concerned about Russian air strikes in Idlib, which could lead to a new flow of refugees. In Ankara they are clearly perceived as pressure before the negotiations in Sochi. In March, the Russian ambassador in Ankara was already summoned to the Foreign Ministry regarding this matter. After this, the shelling died down for some time, but around June they began to increase again. Therefore, the Turkish authorities are trying to respond to Moscow’s pain points and will definitely raise this issue at the meeting of the two presidents,” Semenov said.
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