Erdogan denounces Russia’s annexation of Crimea

Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan denounced Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea. Erdogan met with his Ukranian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy on 3 February in Ukraine.
They held a bilateral meeting and attended a business forum. Erdoğan later said that his country’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity will continue, adding that Ankara is “closely monitoring” the situation of Crimea’s Tatar Turks.
Russian security forces in Crimea have arrested dozens of Crimean Tatars on charges of ties with militant groups. Rights activists have denounced the charges as fake. The Tatars have faced persecution since Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea.
Zelenskiy thanked Turkey for the military and financial cooperation between the two countries. He noted that Ukraine counts on Turkey’s support for the release of Ukrainian citizens, including Crimean Tatars, arrested in occupied Crimea.
Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea has not been recognised by most of the world’s nations and triggered the EU’s sanctions against Moscow.