Crimean Tatars

In a video message to the Fourth Summit of the Crimean Platform Leaders, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan demanded that Russia return control of Crimea to Ukraine, Anadolu Agency reports.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reaffirmed that Türkiye never recognized the annexation of Crimea, a situation he said has worsened the suffering of the region’s inhabitants.

The Turkish president, in a recorded message to the Crimea Platform Leaders’ Summit, stressed that the return of Crimea to Ukraine is a requirement of international law.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has renewed his call for a fair and lasting peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine to end the ongoing war, reaffirming Türkiye's strong support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

Ten Ukrainian civilians held prisoner for years by Russia arrived in Kyiv overnight Saturday after the mediation of the Vatican, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

They were freed Friday. Some had been captured years before Russia's full-scale invasion . The pope has said the Holy See has been involved in past prisoner swaps during the Ukraine war.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has reaffirmed Türkiye's stance against the annexation of Crimea by Russia and pledged solidarity with Ukraine's territorial integrity.

"We express in every platform, especially in the United Nations, that Crimea is a part of Ukraine," Erdoğan stated on Aug. 23, speaking via a video message to attendees of the Third Crimea Platform Summit in Kiev.

The Foreign Ministry expressed "concern" on prison sentences of 13 years against Türkiye's Crimean Tatar kinsmen Cemil Gafarov, Servet Gaziyev, Erfan Osmanov, Alim Karimov and Seyran Murtaza.

Although in March it voted for the United Nations General Assembly resolution demanding an end to Russian aggression, Turkey did not join the Western sanctions.
At the same time, however, it blocked the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles for the passage of Russian and other military ships into the Black Sea.

Two weeks after his second meeting this summer with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Recep Tayyip Erdogan again demanded that Russia return the annexed Crimea to Ukraine.

The 2014 invasion of Ukraine and seizure of the Crimean Peninsula is the top reason why the U.S. has sanctioned Russian individuals

He said he did not know Tatar would be present at the event