BRUSSELS: Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told Reuters on Friday (Apr 4) that any potential peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia would be “difficult to digest” but still better than the alternative of more death and destruction.
Türkiye, a NATO member, has maintained cordial ties with both Kyiv and Moscow since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It has voiced support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and provided it with military help, while opposing sanctions on Russia.
In an interview on the sidelines of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Fidan said Türkiye supported a US initiative to seek an end to the war in Ukraine, but that it was not easy to reach a deal.
The sides remained a “little bit far away” from reaching an agreement, he told Reuters.
Asked about potential security guarantees for Ukraine, Fidan said Europe could not provide sufficient guarantees on its own without US support, but added that a deterrence factor was needed for the fighting not to restart.
The prospect of ending the war has also heightened Türkiye’s role in regional security, making it a key potential partner in the restructuring of Europe’s security architecture, as European powers scramble to bolster their own defences and seek guarantees for Ukraine under any forthcoming peace deal.
