Turkey is not planning to impose sanctions against Russia at the moment, it wants to leave an open channel of trust, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said.
“At the moment we are not planning to impose sanctions against Russia. Because we want the channel of trust to remain open. And, of course, we do not want our economy to suffer,” A Haber TV channel quoted Kalin as saying.
Earlier, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance expects sanctions against Russia from all allies, a signal sent to Turkey as well.
Turkish President Tayip Erdogan spoke to Joe Biden on Thursday about the significance of Turkey’s role in acting as mediator between Russia and Ukraine.
In a phone call with the American president Mr Erdogan said it was “important” for Turkey to “maintain dialogue with both Ukraine and Russia to prevent their conflict from worsening”, according to Reuters. Turkey has a good relationship with both countries, which it sees as crucial in trying to resolve the conflict.
It has held more of a neutral role in the conflict than other NATO states – it has condemned the invasion of Ukraine but is not in favour of sanctions against Moscow.
Talks between the Russian and Ukrainian Foreign Ministers have taken place in Turkey with Ankara’s support.