Contrary to the claim of the President of the party “United Macedonia”, Janko Bačev, that Turkey has a neutral position on the war in Ukraine, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that his country supports Ukraine’s struggle to protect its territorial integrity. The Turkish Foreign Ministry, meanwhile, said the invasion of Ukraine was a serious violation of international law, writes Truthmeter.mk.
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The President of the party “United Macedonia”, Janko Bačev, in a Facebook post, referred to the developments in Ukraine, commenting on the position of Turkey – as a NATO member:
Imagine, a regional power like Turkey, a NATO member, promotes neutrality in the war in Ukraine.
Unfortunately, the puppet government in Skopje, instead of a principled and neutral policy towards Ukraine, chose softness and support.
[Source: Janko Bačev’s Facebook profile; Date: 24.02.2022]
EXPLANATION:
The statement of the President of United Macedonia, Janko Bačev, that Turkey has a neutral position regarding the war in Ukraine, is incorrect.
The fact that Turkey does not promote neutrality regarding the war with Ukraine can be seen in the announcement by the Turkish Foreign Ministry published by the Turkish news agency Anatolia. The announcement sharply reacts to Russia’s military intervention and at the same time calls on Moscow to “end the unjust and illegal action.”
We consider the military operation launched by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation against Ukraine unacceptable and we reject it.
The intervention not only destroys the Minsk Agreements, but is a serious violation of international law and a serious threat to the security of our region and the world.
Our support for Ukraine’s political unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity will continue, reads the announcement.
The announcement, according to the Anatolia news agency, came after Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the green light for military intervention in Ukraine, just days after recognizing the two separatist-controlled enclaves in eastern Ukraine.
Some media outlets reported that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in a telephone conversation a day before the invasion of Ukraine, told Russian President Putin that “he will not recognize any measure that affects Ukraine’s integrity and that military conflict will not bring good any good”.
During his chairmanship of a meeting of the Turkish Security Council, which focused on the Russian military operation in Ukraine, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Russian military intervention was a serious blow to peace, prosperity and stability in the region.
Turkey supports Ukraine’s struggle to protect its territorial integrity, and I told that to Zelensky, with whom I have just spoken. We reject the military operation launched by Russia in Ukraine and consider it unacceptable, Erdogan said.
Taking into account the official statement of the Turkish Foreign Ministry that “Russian intervention is a serious violation of international law”, as well as the position of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, that “the Russian attack on Ukraine is a serious threat to peace, prosperity and stability in the region”, Bacev’s statement that “Turkey as a NATO member has a neutral position on the war in Ukraine” is assessed as untrue.
