MFA hosts third meeting of the Ukrainian-Turkish Joint Strategic Planning Group

November 10, 2014, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey Mr. Mevlut Çavuşoğlu is paying a working visit to Ukraine. The main purpose of the visit is to hold the third meeting of the Joint Strategic Planning Group – the bilateral body functioning within the framework of the mechanism of the strategic partnership between the two countries. The meeting was a preparatory stage to the IV meeting of the Ukraine –Turkey High Level Strategic Council co-chaired by the Presidents of the two countries, to be held in the near future after the formation of a new government in Ukraine.

During the negotiations the Ministers discussed a wide range of the issues of practical cooperation between Ukraine and Turkey as well as the regional and international issues. Special attention was paid to implementation of the concrete projects of the bilateral agenda. The Sides agreed to give impetus to the development of Ukrainian-Turkish cooperation in the aerospace, energy and military-technical spheres.

The situation in the East of Ukraine and Crimea was discussed in detail. In this context the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey emphasized absolute support of Ukraine, its territorial integrity and inviolability of internationally recognized borders and unity of our country. Special emphasis was placed on consolidating efforts in order to protect the rights of Crimean Tatars suffering from the pressure of the occupation authorities in Crimea.

In the context of multilateral cooperation the primary attention was paid to issues of the European integration, which is top-priority for the two Sides.

Moreover, the parties exchanged their views on the issue of strengthening security in the Black Sea region where the strategic balance and trust have been significantly undermined by the Russian aggression against Ukraine.