Russia-Turkey talks
http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/59717
The President of Russia met at the Kremlin with President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan who arrived in Russia on a working visit.
During a limited format meeting, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed key aspects of bilateral cooperation in the trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian areas, as well as issues pertaining to a Syrian settlement. Afterward, the talks continued with the participation of members of the delegations
The heads of state held a joint news conference upon the completion of the talks.
The beginning of the meeting with President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr President,
I am pleased to welcome you here in Moscow.
We continue our practice of regular meetings, consultations and exchange of views, and I should note that this is yielding positive results.
In the first 10 months of 2018, bilateral trade grew more than in the entire previous year. The number of Russian tourists visiting Turkey last year rose by 30 percent to an all-time high of six million.
This goes to show how the citizens of our countries perceive the change in the nature and quality of Russian-Turkish relations.
Mr President, my dear friend, the credit for this largely goes to you personally. It is your personal achievement, because you devote significant attention to this matter.
Major joint projects are being implemented, and everything is going according to plan.
Of course, we also deal with regional security and cooperate extensively on Syria.
Welcome, I am happy to see you.
President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan (retranslated): My dear friend, after the frequent meetings that you and I had in 2018, this will be our first meeting in 2019.
Indeed, our relations are expanding in many spheres, including culture, military and trade.
Undoubtedly, the fact that our relations are expanding is having a ripple effect on regional security. No doubt, our solidarity is making a significant contribution to regional security.
We held trilateral summits in Sochi, Tehran and Ankara as part of the Astana process, which have made a great contribution to promoting this process, and I believe our meeting will also be beneficial for it.
Our expanding relations in tourism show that our respective countries and peoples continue to strengthen their ties.
As you have noted, our trade relations are on the rise, and this trend will continue into the future. During our meetings, you set the goal of taking our trade to the $100 billion mark.
I would also like to take this opportunity to express my condolences to the families of those who died in the collision of two ships in the Kerch Strait. It is well known that 16 Turkish citizens died in this accident.
Thank you very much, Mr Putin, for your sympathetic approach to this matter.
(Speaking Russian) Thank you.
Vladimir Putin: I want to express my condolences on the deaths of those Turkish citizens.
The incident occurred outside our territorial sea in neutral waters as fuel was being pumped from one ship to another.
Indeed, our first responders acted promptly and did their best to save the people. Still, it is a major tragedy for the victims’ families and the people who were injured.
Please accept my condolences.
News conference following Russian-Turkish talks
http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/59718
Vladimir Putin and President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a joint news conference after Russian-Turkish consultations
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr President, ladies and gentlemen,
Regrettably, on the eve of our talks, reports of a tragic accident on the Black Sea arrived. We talked about this at the beginning of our meeting. Turkish sailors are among the dead. I would like to express my sincere condolences once again in this connection.
Mr President and I work closely and meet regularly. Our meetings are always intensive and, without exaggeration, productive. This has a positive influence on our practical work.
The Russia-Turkey-Iran summits in Ankara and Tehran, as part of the Astana process, are also very productive. They were devoted to the settlement in Syria. We are preparing to host another summit in Russia soon. Mr President and I have already agreed on the venue and tentative date. We will have to coordinate this with our Iranian partners.
Today, our talks took place in a constructive and businesslike atmosphere, something that is traditional for Russian-Turkish talks. We largely concentrated on economic issues and humanitarian ties but certainly spoke at length about the situation in Syria. We discussed in detail the prospects for the inter-Syrian political process.
Russia and Turkey assume a clear-cut position of principle – to achieve a long-term settlement of the Syrian crisis on a political and diplomatic basis, primarily, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254 and with strict observance of the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country.
It is in this vein that Mr President and I discussed issues of cooperation in the Astana format. At this time, this format is the most effective mechanism for settling the conflict in Syria.
We, of course, focused on establishing a Constitutional Committee, which will deal with key aspects of the future structure of the state in Syria. Let me remind you that Russian and Turkish diplomats, in close contact with their Iranian colleagues, carried out serious work to coordinate the membership of this committee and honoured all agreements we reached with France and Germany in Istanbul.
Sadly, we failed to form this Constitutional Committee before the end of last year, though our efforts laid a strong and balanced foundation for launching a stable and viable political settlement process.
We also discussed issues related to finally putting a stop to all terrorist groups’ activities in Syria. In particular, we talked about implementing the Russian-Turkish Memorandum on establishing a demilitarised zone in Idlib, which we signed in Sochi. We can see that our Turkish partners spare no effort to eliminate the terrorist threat emanating from there.
At the same time, we must work together with the aim of finally relieving tensions in that area. In this context, we discussed what additional steps Russia and Turkey could take to stabilise the situation around Idlib.
We proceed from the premise that supporting the ceasefire should not come at the expense of the struggle against terrorists, which is to be continued.
Another topic of discussion was the US leadership’s intention to withdraw US troops from the north-east of Syria and its effect on developments in the Syrian Arab Republic going forward. If these plans are really executed, it will be a positive step and would help stabilise the situation in this troubled area of Syria, currently under the control of Kurdish formations.
In this context, we support official Damascus entering into dialogue with Kurdish representatives. This dialogue would doubtless promote the consolidation of Syrian society and national accord, which would be in the interests of both Syria and all neighbouring countries.
Cooperation between Russia and Turkey in the post-conflict development of Syria is of great importance. The President and I agreed that the military forces and diplomats of both our countries would continue coordinated efforts in this direction with the aim of encouraging the large-scale return of Syrian refugees and internally displaced persons.
President Erdoğan to Visit Russia
https://www.tccb.gov.tr/en/speeches-statements/558/101655/president-erdogan-to-visit-russia
FOLLOWING IS THE PRESS RELEASE ON PRESIDENT ERDOĞAN’S UPCOMING VISIT TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION:
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will pay a one-day working visit to the Russian Federation on January 23, 2019.
As part of the visit, President Erdoğan will meet with President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation. Delegations comprised of relevant ministers and officials from the two countries are also expected to come together.
During the talks in Moscow, views will be exchanged regarding regional and international issues, Syria in particular, as well as the bilateral relations between Turkey and Russia.
Respectfully announced to the public.
President Erdoğan meets with President Putin of Russia
https://www.tccb.gov.tr/en/
President Erdoğan meets with President Putin of Russia