Turkish FM Says Concerned by Ukraine War Escalation

Turkey is worried by a recent uptick in attacks on civilians in the Ukraine war, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Tuesday during a visit to Moscow.

Turkey is casting itself as a potential peacemaker between Moscow and Kyiv, seeking to bring the four-year war that has killed hundreds of thousands to a close.

“The recent escalation in the Ukraine war and the danger of its geographical expansion are a source of serious concern,” Fidan said at a press conference alongside his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.

“In particular, the increase in attacks on targets behind the front lines and attacks threatening the safety of navigation in the Black Sea have effects that harm the interests of third parties. Certain de-escalatory measures are therefore necessary.”

He was speaking a day after a Russian missile and drone barrage killed 11 across Ukraine and damaged a cathedral in the centre of Kyiv.

Ukraine responded with an attack on an oil refinery on the outskirts of Moscow -- a strike designed to hit Russia’s vital oil revenues, which Kyiv says fund the war.

Turkey has hosted multiple rounds of talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations seeking a possible end to the war -- none of which have resulted in a breakthrough.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has stuck to hard-line territorial and political demands that Kyiv has ruled out as capitulation.

He has also rejected multiple requests for a face-to-face meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

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Zelensky said more than 60% of Russians want the war against Ukraine to end, arguing that growing losses and the lack of battlefield success are changing public opinion inside Russia. Speaking at the Reuters Next summit on Tuesday, Zelensky said increasing pressure on the Kremlin remains essential to force Moscow toward negotiations.

Kyiv’s allies were meeting in France on Tuesday at the G7 summit, where US President Donald Trump urged Moscow to “make a deal” to end the war.

Russia’s decision to launch an all-out offensive on Ukraine in February 2022 has led to the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II, with swathes of eastern and southern Ukraine destroyed, millions forced from their homes and tens of thousands of civilians killed.