President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s name has come up in discussions on efforts to secure peace, or at least a cease-fire, between Russia and Ukraine. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha told Ukrainian news agency RBC-Ukraine on Monday that renewed peace efforts could be possible “either together with Trump or through the mediation of President Erdoğan.”
“We are ready for this,” he said, adding that possible talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin could “at the very least” focus on a cease-fire and an exchange of prisoners of war.
Sybiha said Ukraine wanted trilateral talks to be held as soon as possible and would seize any opportunity to pursue peace. He stressed that a meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin was essential to ending the conflict.
In a phone call with Putin last week, Erdoğan reaffirmed Ankara’s readiness to contribute to efforts to establish direct dialogue between Russia and Ukraine.
An increasingly influential player in international diplomacy, Türkiye successfully brokered the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which facilitated the shipment of Ukrainian agricultural exports to global markets during the war. Although the initiative did not achieve all its objectives, Türkiye has remained one of the few countries capable of facilitating negotiations, thanks to its close ties with both the Kremlin and Kyiv. In 2024, Türkiye helped mediate one of the largest prisoner swaps between Russia and the United States since the Cold War. Separately, Istanbul has hosted meetings between Russian and Ukrainian delegations throughout the conflict.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said at a joint news conference in Ankara with his Hungarian counterpart last week that Türkiye had worked to resolve the conflict since it began. Fidan, however, warned that the war remained a major threat to regional and global stability, particularly security in the Black Sea.
He cited the grain initiative and Türkiye’s strict enforcement of the Montreux Convention as concrete elements of Ankara’s efforts. He also expressed concern about the conflict spilling over into the Black Sea, noting that Turkish-owned vessels flying the Turkish flag had been targeted.
“Increasing attacks on civilian vessels are a grave threat to Black Sea security. The regional countries should not allow the Black Sea to become a new front in the conflict. We warned both sides of the conflict on this matter,” Fidan said.
He added that Türkiye had also made several proposals to both sides to help resolve the conflict.
The Kremlin on Monday rejected a 60-day cease-fire proposed by Zelenskyy to allow Ukraine to hold presidential elections, saying it wanted a comprehensive peace deal instead.
“Please tell Putin, give us two months, 60 days of total cease-fire, 60 days, and we will organize elections,” Zelenskyy told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday that Russia wanted a long-term peace deal rather than a temporary cease-fire.
“In the Kremlin, both President Putin and officials at other levels have repeatedly stated that we do not want a cease-fire,” Peskov said. “We want long-term peace and are prepared to do everything possible to achieve it.”
Russia has long pressed Ukraine to hold elections, arguing that Kyiv’s failure to do so renders Zelenskyy an illegitimate leader. Elections during wartime are prohibited under Ukrainian law.
Under Erdoğan’s leadership, Türkiye has raised its diplomatic profile and achieved results in its peacemaking efforts.
The veteran politician has reshaped Turkish foreign policy to safeguard Türkiye’s interests and support the rights of oppressed peoples. In the Karabakh conflict, a major issue for Türkiye’s ally Azerbaijan, Erdoğan voiced Ankara’s support for Baku’s fight against Armenian occupation. Türkiye’s military and political support contributed to the outcome of the 44-day Second Karabakh War, which began on Sept. 27, 2020, and ended with Azerbaijan’s victory. The war effectively ended nearly three decades of Armenian control over Azerbaijani territories and enabled Azerbaijan to regain control of its lands.
Erdoğan’s diplomatic efforts and support for Libya’s internationally recognized government also helped shift the balance of power in the country, which had been mired in political turmoil since the fall of Moammar Gadhafi. Türkiye supported the government in Tripoli as armed groups backed by foreign actors sought to seize the capital, intensifying the conflict.
Türkiye has also sought to mediate disputes across Africa, a continent long shaped by outside powers’ competing interests. In 2024, Erdoğan stepped in to help resolve tensions between Somalia and Ethiopia, hosting Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed at the Presidential Complex in Ankara. The two leaders announced an agreement following talks hosted by Erdoğan.
Previously, Türkiye hosted rounds of talks between Somalia and Somaliland in 2013 and 2014, laying the groundwork for further negotiations. In 2021, Erdoğan offered to mediate between Egypt and Ethiopia over the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Türkiye also reached out to Ethiopia to help end the conflict in the Tigray region. That year, Erdoğan also offered to mediate a border dispute between Ethiopia and Sudan.
Erdoğan again stepped in when a new conflict erupted between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Türkiye’s intervention helped bring the parties to the negotiating table, although efforts to secure a lasting settlement remained challenging.
Under Erdoğan’s leadership, Türkiye has also played a role in peace efforts in the Middle East. Working alongside Qatar and Egypt, Ankara helped mediate Israel-Hamas negotiations and efforts to secure a cease-fire to end Israel’s attacks on Gaza, which began in October 2023.