Decades will undoubtedly be needed to restore trust between Western countries and Russia, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Tuesday April 19.
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“It will take time to rebuild everything. It may take decades to restore confidence,” Mevlut Cavusoglu said, saying that “we are witnessing the start of a new Cold War.” As a NATO member and an ally of Ukraine – to which it has supplied combat drones – Turkey has sought to facilitate mediation between Moscow and Kyiv since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, and adamantly refuses to join Western sanctions against Russia in an open manner to keep line with the Kremlin.
“Despite developments on the ground, we believe there is still a place for diplomacy,” added the head of Turkey’s diplomacy during a joint press conference with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto in Ankara. Mevlut Cavusoglu stressed that between Kyiv and Moscow “rapid measures must be taken for a ceasefire”. Turkey twice hosted direct negotiations between the two parties, on March 10 at ministerial level in Antalya (South) and on March 29 in Istanbul.