Turkey does not intend to join sanctions against Russia imposed by certain countries, but will be obliged to join the restrictive measures if they are imposed by the UN. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said this on Thursday during a speech in Alanya, which was broadcast by the TRT television channel.
"We are one of the five strongest members of NATO. But we have to keep the interests of our own country as a priority. So here I am joining sanctions against Russia. How will Alanya traders sell their goods to Russia? Yes, if the sanctions are imposed by the UN, I will be obliged to comply with them. But if I comply with the sanctions imposed by this or that [state], whether they are fair or not, and I give up my principles, I will stop considering the interests of my country," he said.
Afterwards, Cavusoglu was asked how Russian tourists would come to the republic if Turkey complied with sanctions against Russia. "Don't we demonstrate a principled position? We do. We comply with the Montreux Convention to the last letter, we do not recognize the annexation of Crimea (Crimea's reunification with Russia - TASS), we stand for the territorial integrity of Ukraine, we call the war a war. Isn't that principled? But we will not ruin this balance policy of ours for the sake of showing favor to anyone," the minister said.
Turkey has not officially joined the sanctions of the EU, the US and several other Western countries against Russia and is trying to maintain a neutral position, also for the success of its mediation efforts to resolve the Ukrainian conflict. Meanwhile, Western countries are exerting some pressure on the republic, trying to persuade it to impose trade and economic restrictions on Russia.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS