Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday in a telephone conversation with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan thanked him for his assistance in holding Russian-Ukrainian talks in Istanbul, the Kremlin press service said.
"The Russian president expressed gratitude to the Turkish side for its assistance in holding the next round of talks between Russian and Ukrainian representatives in Istanbul on March 29," the statement said.
In addition, the Kremlin added, the conversation included "principled assessments of the ongoing negotiation process."
"When discussing humanitarian issues in the context of the ongoing special military operation to protect Donbass, Recep Tayyip Erdogan thanked for the assistance provided through the Russian Defense Ministry in the evacuation of Turkish citizens and merchant ships from the combat zone," the statement said.
Putin and Erdogan also discussed the development of bilateral cooperation between the countries and agreed on further contacts.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS