Turkish Foreign Minister (FM) Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu met his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Antalya on Wednesday to discuss the prospects of peace in Syria and the issue of providing aid through Syria’s Bab al-Hawa border with Turkey. Additionally, both envoys held talks on regional security, including the ongoing tensions in Nagorno-Karabakh, Afghanistan, and Libya.
Pleased to host FM Sergey Lavrov of #Russia in #Antalya, much popular destination for Russian tourists.
— Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu (@MevlutCavusoglu) June 30, 2021
-Evaluated our relations from trade to energy as well as regional issues.
-Accelerated joint production of vaccines.
-Aiming for pre-pandemic number of tourists.🇹🇷🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/UBoNQRcvvf
During a joint press conference after their meeting, Çavuşoğlu stressed that Turkey would continue working with Russia to achieve peace and stability in Syria. “The process for the writing of a new constitution should begin. Also, all terrorist organisations that pose a threat to Syria’s integrity need to be cleared,” he said, referring to the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) militants present in the country.
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Reuters reported that Çavuşoğlu and Lavrov talked about the possibility of extending aid to Syria through its last open crossing—Bab al-Hawa—near the Turkey-Syria border. Russia opposes the opening of the border and has prevented the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) from doing so through its veto power. The UNSC mandate to extend the aid crossing is likely to end on July 10.
Earlier this month, a UN official warned that millions of people in Syria would face a humanitarian crisis if the organisation fails to extend aid operations through the crossing. The UN Security Council last year approved Resolution 2533, allowing the delivery of critical aid, including food and medical supplies, through the Bab al-Hawa crossing in northwest Syria. However, due to opposition from Russia and China, the UNSC failed to extend the mandate of the remaining three border crossings—Bab al-Salama, Al-Yarubiah, and Al-Ramtha.
Also Read: US Warns Russia Not to Use its UN Veto to Restrict Access to Send Aid Into Syria
Russia has stressed on the delivery of aid from Damascus, saying that the Bab al-Hawa is being used to supply aid to rebel fighters. Lavrov previously accused Western donors of “blackmailing” Moscow to cut off humanitarian financing to its ally Syria if the border crossing mandate is not extended. “We believe that further concessions to the Americans and Europeans under the pressure of financial threats will undermine the credibility of the United Nations, its Charter and the Security Council’s resolutions,” Lavrov recently said in a statement to the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres.
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In Wednesday’s meeting, the Ministers also discussed the ongoing tensions in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region between Armenia and Azerbaijan. “Russia wants Armenians and Azerbaijanis to live as good neighbours and urges reconciliation,” Lavrov said. In addition, the Russian FM called for greater cooperation between Ankara and Moscow and said that the joint command centre with Turkey in Azerbaijan is a step in the right direction. Last year’s 44-day war between the two South Caucasus neighbours ended after both sides agreed to a Russian-brokered ceasefire.
Furthermore, both envoys talked about the efforts towards achieving stability in Libya and Afghanistan. Çavuşoğlu mentioned Russia and Turkey’s “significant contributions” to the establishment of a ceasefire in Libya. “The political unity and territorial integrity of the country is our priority. I hope everything goes as planned in Libya and peace and stability is firmly established,” he added.
Apart from regional security, Çavuşoğlu and Lavrov also discussed the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and commercial, economic, and defence ties.