Fidan's Russia Visit Puts Türkiye Back on Ukraine Talks Track
By Bosphorus News Geopolitics Desk
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Türkiye is ready to provide a platform for new talks on the Ukraine war after Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Kazan on June 17.
The Russian comment puts Türkiye's mediation role back into the Ukraine diplomacy file after Fidan's June 16-17 visit to Russia, where he met Putin, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and senior Russian officials across security, energy and transport portfolios.
Ushakov said Turkish authorities had confirmed their readiness to host negotiations aimed at resolving the Ukraine issue. The comment does not mean a new round has been agreed, but it places Ankara's offer back on the table from the Russian side after the Fidan-Putin meeting.
Fidan had already repeated Türkiye's position during his Moscow talks with Lavrov, saying Ankara was ready to host further negotiations if the parties accepted. Reuters separately reported that Fidan also warned Russia to avoid steps that could threaten Türkiye's security and interests in the Black Sea, where attacks on vessels and energy infrastructure have raised direct security concerns for Ankara.
The Russian signal follows Lavrov's earlier TASS-quoted remarks during the Moscow leg of Fidan's visit, when he said Moscow appreciated Türkiye's assistance in seeking a peaceful settlement over Ukraine. Bosphorus News previously covered that exchange as part of the same Black Sea security and NATO Ankara summit track, after Fidan warned Russia against steps that could threaten Türkiye's security and interests in the Black Sea.
The Russian Foreign Ministry's account of the Lavrov-Fidan meeting also pointed to Türkiye's readiness to offer Istanbul as a venue for talks, including discussions that could involve the United States. Moscow's wording reflected Russia's own diplomatic line, but the venue offer itself matches Ankara's long-running position that Türkiye can host direct talks if both sides agree.
The visit was broader than a single Ukraine meeting. Fidan's program included contacts with Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk, presidential aide Igor Levitin, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and Rosneft chief Igor Sechin, alongside the Lavrov meeting in Moscow and the Putin meeting in Kazan.
That wider Russian program shows why the Ukraine file cannot be separated from the rest of Ankara's Moscow channel. Türkiye is managing Black Sea security, shipping risk, energy flows, transport corridors, sanctions pressure and Ukraine-Russia exchanges while keeping working ties with Moscow inside its NATO framework.
Ukraine also registered Türkiye's offer. Ukrinform, citing Fidan's message after the visit, reported that Türkiye remains ready to support further negotiations and continues to see diplomacy as the path to ending the war.
Türkiye hosted earlier Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul after Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Ankara has also maintained working relations with both Kyiv and Moscow, backed Ukraine's territorial integrity, supported prisoner and grain diplomacy, and kept Black Sea security near the center of its own regional agenda.
The timing gives the latest Russian comment added weight. Türkiye is preparing to host the NATO Summit in Ankara on July 7-8, while keeping its Russia channel active on Ukraine, energy and Black Sea security. Bosphorus News previously covered how Fidan's Putin meeting in Kazan raised Ankara's Russia channel after Türkiye pressed Moscow on Black Sea security and kept its Ukraine-Russia talks offer open.
No new peace round has been announced, and Ukraine has not confirmed a fresh meeting format. What has returned to the record is Türkiye's platform role, now restated by Moscow after Fidan's meeting with Putin and linked again to Ankara's wider Black Sea diplomacy before the NATO Summit.
Sources: Reuters, Russian Foreign Ministry, Ukrinform, Daily Sabah, Bosphorus News review and reporting.