Erdogan Also Encouraging ‘Necessary Dictator’ Zelensky
April 11 , 2021 (EIRNS)—Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s three-hour meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara yesterday resulted in a 20-point “Joint Declaration of the Ninth meeting of the High-Level Strategic Council between Ukraine and the Republic of Turkey.” Among the most important points:
Point 5: “To reaffirm unconditional support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.”
Point 6: “To continue to coordinate steps aimed at restoring the territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders, in particular the de-occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, as well as the territories in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.”
In point number 9, they promise “To support the peaceful settlement of the situation in certain districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine through dialogue based on the Minsk agreements...”
In point number 14, they agree “To express support for the prospect of Ukraine’s NATO membership, in particular its intention to obtain a Membership Action Plan in the near future, and to note the desire to promote interoperability of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the armed forces of Allies.”
During the joint press conference after their meeting, Erdogan claimed that “Our main goal is that the Black Sea continues to be a sea of peace, tranquility and cooperation,” and that “We do not want an escalation of tension in our common geography in any way.”
During the meeting with the Ukrainian President “we, as Turkey, strongly defended Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,” Erdogan said. “We reaffirmed our principled stance of not recognizing the annexation of Crimea.”
Zelensky, for his part, praised Turkey’s “extremely important” support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity. He said that the defense industry was the driving force behind the Turkish-Ukrainian strategic partnership. It seems likely to me, therefore, that Turkey promised its drones should the Kiev regime resume offensive operations in the Donbas.
This meeting may represent what Mario Draghi meant when, on April 8, he characterized Erdogan as “one of those dictators in Europe who are necessary nonetheless,” causing Ankara to call in the Italian ambassador and protest. Erdogan’s government resulted from some sort of election; Draghi’s is unelected, the product of an EU coup.
In this pre-war crisis, Erdogan’s friendship with British Ambassador and influencer Sir Dominick Chilcott should also be kept in mind.
