The two Presidents: Ukraine and Turkey to unite efforts for de-occupation of Crimea

President Petro Poroshenko noted that Ukraine and Turkey would cooperate in the framework of international organizations to de-occupy Crimea and return the Ukrainian sovereignty to the peninsula.

"We stand for joint steps aimed at de-occupation of Crimea. For this end, we are going to unite efforts in the framework of international organizations and on the basis of new international formats, including Geneva Plus with participation of the guarantors of the Budapest Memorandum, Turkey and Ukraine," the Head of State said at the joint press conference with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

"I would like to emphasize that Ukraine and Turkey are willing to unite efforts being guided by the word "for" not "against".
We unite our efforts to return stability to the region. To restore respect for international law. To prevent further human rights violations in Crimea, Donbas, Syria. More than ever we feel our unity and determination," the Head of State stressed.

According to the President, the issue of occupation of the Ukrainian peninsula by Russia had been a priority in the negotiations of the Heads of State in a narrow format, as well as in the course of the fifth session of the High Level Strategic Council between Ukraine and Turkey. "We have discussed the situation in the occupied Crimea in details and emphasized inadmissibility of militarization of Crimea caused by temporary occupation," the Head of State stressed.

The two Presidents have also discussed human rights violation and oppression of Crimean Tatars, Ukrainian patriots and other nations in Crimea.

"Russian occupants conduct massive human rights violations, force people to get Russian citizenship, implements deliberate policy to change the composition of population, presses out ethnic Ukrainians, Crimean Tatars and other ethnic minorities, destroys Ukrainian languages and persecutes Ukrainian speakers. The Ukrainian church also faces oppression," Petro Poroshenko said.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan noted that Turkey would always support territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine and had never recognized the illegal annexation of Crimea.

The President of Turkey noted that his country would intensify efforts to ensure rights and freedoms of Crimean Tatars in the occupied Crimea.

The Turkish President expressed full solidarity with Petro Poroshenko in the issue of Crimean Tatars: "They are forced to live in extremely difficult conditions and we have to keep their issue on the international agenda". He noted that the parties had coordinated joint actions in the international arena to protect the rights of Crimean Tatars, resolve the situation in Donbas peacefully and de-occupy Crimea.

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