ANKARA
\nRussia\u2019s decision to pull its forces back from the southern Ukrainian region of Kherson was \u201cpositive and important,\u201d Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said.
\n\u201cRussia\u2019s decision regarding Kherson is positive, an important decision,\u201d told reporters in the capital Ankara on Thursday before leaving for a summit of Turkic countries in Uzbekistan.
\nVowing to maintain dialogue with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Erdogan\u2019s comments came after Moscow ordered its troops on Wednesday to withdraw from Kherson to the east bank of the Dnieper River.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t know whether there will be Russian participation in the G20 or not. We\u2019ll have the opportunity to meet face-to-face there (with Putin). Otherwise, we\u2019ll continue to maintain telephone diplomacy with Russia,\u201d Erdogan said.
\nOn efforts to normalise Ankara\u2019s ties with Yerevan, Erdogan said the Armenian diasporas in France and the US were hindering the process.
\n\u201cThe diasporas are constantly working against it, both in France and in the US,\u201d he said, suggesting that Armenia could turn \u201cthe negative efforts of these diasporas into a positive direction.\u201d
\n\u201cIf they can achieve this, our perspective will change in a positive direction,\u201d added the Turkish leader. \u201cWe strive to make friends, not enemies.\u201d
\nErdogan said he believes the Organization of Turkic States summit to begin in Samarkand on Friday would carry cooperation between member nations to a new level.
\nBilateral relations and global matters will be on the agenda in his contacts with heads of states and governments at the Turkic Council Summit, he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ANKARA Russia\u2019s decision to pull its forces back from the southern Ukrainian region of Kherson was \u201cpositive and important,\u201d Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said. \u201cRussia\u2019s decision regarding Kherson is positive, an important decision,\u201d told reporters in the capital Ankara on Thursday before leaving for a summit of Turkic countries in Uzbekistan. Vowing to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":282421,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-294507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n