Erdogan urges Putin to declare “unilateral” ceasefire in Ukraine

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan сalled on Russian leader Vladimir Putin to declare a "unilateral" ceasefire in Ukraine on Thursday, January 5.

Erdogan and Putin had a telephone conversation to discuss Turkish-Russian relations, Syria, and the Russia-Ukraine war. 

The Turkish President noted that the previous negotiations on Ukraine had brought positive results. Specifically, he mentioned the grain corridor initiative, exchange of prisoners, and the situation around the Zaporizhzhia NPP.

"President Erdogan said that calls for peace and negotiations should be supported by a unilateral ceasefire and a vision for a fair solution," the press service of the Turkish leader reported following phone talks with Putin.

According to Russian media, Putin confirmed his “openness to dialogue” on Ukraine to the Turkish counterpart. However, only “if Kyiv accepts new territorial realities,” namely the Russian occupation of parts of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk regions. 

Ukraine’s leadership reiterated that for any peace talks to happen, Russian invaders must first leave the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. 

A number of Western leaders have also repeatedly claimed that the Kremlin is not really interested in negotiations as the Russian forces intensify their offensive in Donbas and continue shelling Ukraine’s civil infrastructure. However the Russian military needs a pause to rearm.

Turkish presidential adviser Ibrahim Kalin said Erdogan was due to have a separate conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The last time Erdogan spoke with Zelenskyy was on December 11.