31.10.2026 19:20
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Presidential Dolmabahçe Office. Speaking at a joint press conference after the meeting, President Erdoğan, one of the two leaders, said, "We are witnessing the clashes spill over into the Black Sea due to the recent escalation. We cannot accept attacks no matter where they come from. We will continue our talks with the parties in order to re-establish navigational safety in the Black Sea."
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Presidential Dolmabahçe Office. The meeting between President Erdoğan and Zelensky lasted about 1.5 hours. After their meeting, the two leaders appeared before the cameras and spoke at a joint press conference.
Highlights from President Erdoğan's statements are as follows:
“The losses and destruction caused by the war are unfortunately increasing with each passing day. I once again convey my condolences to Mr. Zelensky and the friendly Ukrainian people for those who lost their lives in the war. In our talks with him today, we thoroughly discussed the recently increasing efforts to ensure peace in Ukraine and the security situation in the Black Sea.
We are pleased that efforts to end the war through diplomatic means, especially with the efforts of U.S. President Mr. Trump, have regained momentum. In fact, the negotiations we hosted between Ukraine and Russia had shown that concrete results can be achieved through diplomacy. At the point we have reached today, we say that a just peace has no losers. I would like to emphasize that we are ready to make every effort within our means to open the path to peace.
“WE CANNOT POSSIBLY ACCEPT THE ATTACKS IN THE BLACK SEA IN ANY WAY, REGARDLESS OF WHO THEY COME FROM”
In our meeting with Mr. Zelensky, we exchanged views on ensuring the safety of navigation in the Black Sea. Since the beginning of the war, we have been actively working to maintain security and stability in the Black Sea. However, in parallel with the recent escalation, we are witnessing the conflict spill over into the Black Sea.
It is clear that attacks on civilian ships and steps that would increase escalation in the Black Sea will benefit no one. We cannot possibly accept these attacks in any way, regardless of who they come from and whatever the justification. On this issue, we invite all parties to act responsibly and to act in this manner. We will continue our talks with the parties with the aim of re-establishing the safety of navigation in the Black Sea. I believe that reaching an agreement will also give momentum to efforts to ensure lasting peace in Ukraine. We aim to advance the process by also discussing this issue with Russia.
'STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP' EMPHASIS
We once again confirmed our commitment to the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of our strategic partner Ukraine. The entry into force of the Free Trade Agreement signed between our countries in 2022 as of October 1 has constituted an important step for our bilateral economic and trade relations. This agreement has brought us one step closer to our target of 10 billion dollars in trade volume.
Finally, I believe that our companies, which have not abandoned Ukraine despite the difficult wartime conditions, will, God willing, also make important contributions to the reconstruction of Ukraine. I thank my dear friend Mr. Zelensky for this visit.”
ZELENSKY: WE AGREED TO WORK ON THE BLACK SEA GRAIN CORRIDOR
Highlights from the statements of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy:
Today we held important talks. We focused on concrete issues. I thank Mr. President. We devoted a significant part of our talks to the Black Sea.
Russia is making the situation even worse with the aggression it has continued since 2014.
President Erdoğan and I agreed to work on the Black Sea Grain Corridor. Our aim is to ensure that the corridor works effectively. We discussed the possibility of organizing meetings in Türkiye.