Russia-Ukraine Conflict: President Volodymyr Zelensky Seeks Turkish Support As Tension Mounts

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, visited Istanbul on Saturday, April 10. It marked the leader’s second visit in six months to Turkey. The visit comes as fear of a Russia-Ukraine war increases.

The recent meeting between the Ukrainian leader and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was mostly about tourism, trade and defense ties between the two nations. Following the meeting, Erdogan also urged for an end to the tension between Russia and Ukraine.

Threats to Ukraine by Russia have seen a steep rise recently with both military and rebels targeting the region of Donetsk. In the first week of April, there have been reports of a Ukrainian soldier losing their life as well as the death of a Russia-sponsored separatist during separate conflicts.

Ukrainian army commander, Ruslan Khomchak, assured citizens that the country was not “encircled” by Russian forces. He also revealed that there were more Russian Troops near the border. The continued conflict with separatist groups and the looming threat of Russian occupation acts as a reminder of the occupation of Crimea in 2014.

Moscow does not seem too keen on reducing tension as Dmitry Kozak stated that Russia could move to defend Russian citizens, BBC reported.

Turkey stands to be an effective ally if the conflict evolves into a war. For Turkey, Ukraine stands as a buffer between Russia. The country has continued to strongly advocate for Ukraine’s acceptance into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

During the press conference in Istanbul, both presidents appeared to show a united front against Russian aggression. “Our main goal is that the Black Sea continues to be a sea of peace, tranquility and cooperation,” Erdogan said during the press conference.

Following the meeting with Erdogan, Zelenskyy wrote multiple tweets regarding the relationship between the countries.

Russia’s relation with Turkey has worsened since the Crimean conflict. In 2016, Erdogan had stated that the Black Sea would turn into a “Russian lake” if other countries did not take any action. The discovery of 405 billion cubic meters of natural gas off the coast of the Black Sea has also made Turkey concern about Russian presence, Al Jazeera pointed out.

Russia’s support of Syria also negatively impacted their relationship with Turkey as well as other NATO countries. Even though Turkey is at odds with NATO countries regarding the purchase of the Russian S-400 missile defense system, the country stands strong with Ukraine.