Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, July 3, that Ankara could help end the Ukraine-Russia war, but Putin's spokesman said Erdogan could not play the role of mediator.
Erdogan said, speaking to Putin on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Kazakhstan, that reaching a peace acceptable to both sides is possible.
Putin's spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, dismissed any possibility of serving as an intermediary for the Turkish leader.
"No, it's not possible," said Peskov, without providing any further explanation.
Turkey played a pivotal role in negotiating a deal to secure the safe shipment of grain from Ukraine's Black Sea ports. The agreement remained in force for one year.
