Ukraine cannot afford to develop strategic cooperation, particularly in the field of armaments, with Turkey, which is trying to get closer to the Russian Federation.
This was stated by the Head of Kyiv city organization of UKROP, the Chairman of the Board of “Maidan of Foreign Affairs” Fund Bohdan Yaremenko on the air of 5th TV Channel.
“It’s time we asked the question: what kind of defense strategy is in Turkey, where does it see itself in 5-10 years? Can we declare strategic relations and develop some fields, in particular in weapon production, with a country that is trying to get closer to our enemy?” noted Bohdan Yaremenko.
According to the diplomat, while Ukraine is moving towards integration with NATO, Turkey is reducing its cooperation with the Alliance. In addition, Ankara has adopted an unprecedented decision to purchase anti-aircraft and anti-ballistic missile defense systems S-400 in Russia. The representative of UKROP has noted that NATO countries do not usually buy such systems from non-NATO countries.
In addition, the actions of Turkey contradict its official statements regarding the conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. Despite the declared support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and the concern regarding the annexation of the Crimea and the violation of the rights of the Crimean Tatars, Ankara did not apply sanctions and did not curtail any program of cooperation with Moscow. Moreover, the results of the special monitoring show that Turkey is ranked second after Russia in terms of the number of violations and violators of the prohibition on the entrance to the ports of the annexed Crimea.
At the same time, Ukrainian diplomats should continue to cooperate with Turkey on other issues that are not relevant to our defense or national interests.
“Even though I urge us to think what is strategic about our relations with Turkey, I would not call on to stop co-operation with it,” stressed Bohdan Yaremenko.
