Turkey cancelled some NATO drills in Black Sea
The Turkish government cancelled a number of military exercises of the North Atlantic Alliance in connection with provisions of the Montreux Convention about not admission of military ships to the Black Sea – as informed by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, RIA Novosti reports
In line with the Convention, trade vessels have the right to pass through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits both in peace and in wartime. However, in some situations, the Turkish authorities may prohibit the passage of military ships through these straits.
Mr. Cavusoglu stressed that Turkey is simply a mediator in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and not a participant in it. Therefore, the authorities cannot ‘get involved in sanctions’. According to the Foreign Minister, many view this decision as beneficial.
“Even going beyond the Convention, we ask Russia for ships, there were NATO exercises that were planned in advance. We have cancelled or postponed them. That is, we play an important role," Mr. Cavusoglu added.
Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that his country would not be able to completely abandon Russian gas. According to him, Turkey receives about half of necessary volumes from the Russian Federation, so the Turkish government does not intend to completely break off relations with Russia.
