Ukraine responds to Türkiye's announcement of sea talks: 'Never planned'
Photo: Heorhii Tykhyi, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (Vitalii Nosach/RBC-Ukraine)
Ukraine is unaware of any meeting in Türkiye next week for negotiations with Russia on a Black Sea ceasefire, as previously reported by Turkish media. No such summit was planned, according to Ukraine's Foreign Minister Heorhii Tykhyi.
"This is something Turkish media made up; there will be no meeting in the format of Ukraine - Russia, and it was never planned," said the diplomat.
This statement was made by the representative of Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Heorhii Tykhyi, in response to CNN Turk's report about a supposed meeting between delegations from Kyiv and Moscow planned for April 15-16 at the Naval Forces Command in Ankara, where the parties were allegedly going to discuss a "ceasefire" in the Black Sea area.
Notably, CNN Turk's report cited sources from Turkey's Ministry of National Defense.
Clarification of Black Sea negotiations in Türkiye
After the initial CNN Turk publication, Turkish media later issued a follow-up clarification regarding the negotiations on the Black Sea for April 15-16. This new report did not mention Ukraine's participation.
According to the Turkish daily Hürriyet, the meeting was described as a security consultation on the Black Sea, organized by the Ministry of National Defense of Turkey, with the potential involvement of other foreign countries.
"Officials from the Ministry of National Defense (MND) will discuss how to maintain peace in the Black Sea if Russia and Ukraine reach a ceasefire agreement," wrote Hürriyet.
Additionally, the Turkish Ministry of Defense issued a statement about a meeting scheduled for April 15-16 at the Naval Forces Command's headquarters in Ankara, which would focus on security issues in the Black Sea following a possible ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.
The report further noted that representatives of foreign states' military forces would participate, and the meeting would address "the maritime dimension of military plans to support peace in the Black Sea."
However, the Turkish publication did not specify how these countries would participate in such a summit.
Ukraine-Russia ceasefire discussions
Ukraine and Russia are not currently holding direct negotiations about ending the war. The US is acting as a mediator in the negotiation process.
Earlier, during a conversation between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, they agreed on an energy ceasefire. This deal includes halting attacks on each other's energy infrastructure.
Later, during meetings in Saudi Arabia, teams from Ukraine and the US, as well as separate discussions between the US and Russia, focused on Black Sea security. This included ensuring the safety of civilian shipping.
Ukraine agreed to the discussed arrangements with the US, but Russia has set forth demands. Despite claiming to uphold the energy ceasefire, Russia's military attacked energy facilities in the Kharkiv, Poltava, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kherson regions in March. At the same time, Russia accuses Ukraine of violating the ceasefire.
On April 6, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russia is avoiding a ceasefire to continue its attacks on Ukrainian cities from the sea.
For more details on the ceasefire and what Ukraine, the US, and Russia are saying about it, read the full article.
