Turkey says it is pressing to revive negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and to convene leaders of both sides, President Tayyip Erdogan told NATO chief Mark Rutte in Ankara. Kyiv has asked Ankara to host a leaders-level meeting, and Turkey stresses its continued ties with both Moscow and Kyiv since 2022. Erdogan also urged European NATO allies to shoulder more responsibility for transatlantic security and warned that the U.S.-Iran confrontation risks weakening Europe.
Turkey Pushes To Restart Russia–Ukraine Leader Talks, Erdogan Tells NATO Chief
Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Ankara, Turkey, April 22, 2026. Murat Kula/Turkish Presidential Press Office/Handout via REUTERS
Ankara, April 22 — Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that Ankara is actively working to revive negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and to bring the leaders of both countries together, the Turkish presidency said on Wednesday.
Earlier the same day, Kyiv said it had asked Turkey, a NATO member, to host a leaders-level meeting with Russia. Ankara has maintained channels with both Kyiv and Moscow since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.
"Erdogan said we were engaged, as Turkey, for the Ukraine-Russia war to end with peace, and that we are working to revive negotiations and start talks at leaders' level," the presidency said in a readout of the meeting.
The Turkish president told Rutte that preserving transatlantic ties was "indispensable," while urging European NATO allies to assume greater responsibility for transatlantic security, according to the readout.
Later, Erdogan spoke by phone with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The presidency quoted Erdogan as warning that the U.S.-Iran confrontation was "starting to weaken Europe" and said the damage would grow if world powers did not pursue peace-oriented approaches.
In a separate statement, the presidency reiterated that Turkey is pressing to end the Russia-Ukraine war through negotiations and to secure a lasting peace — an approach Ankara says it is also pursuing with regard to tensions involving Iran.
Turkey shares a border with Iran and has repeatedly called for an end to hostilities there. Last weekend Ankara hosted a diplomacy forum attended by delegations from multiple sides and says it remains in close contact with the United States, Iran and mediators including Pakistan.
(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Alex Richardson and Paul Simao)
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