President Erdoğan said, "We have four martyrs and 14 wounded. I condemn this nefarious terrorist attack and wish Allah’s mercy upon our martyrs.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with President Vladimir Putin of Russia on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit.
President Erdoğan conveyed his gratitude to Putin for the invitation to and hosting of the BRICS Extended Leaders' Session during the press portion of the meeting at the Kazan EXPO, where the summit was held, and expressed his pleasure to meet Putin after the meeting in Astana.
Thanking Putin for his condolences regarding the victims of the terrorist attacks on TAI, President Erdoğan said, "We have four martyrs and 14 wounded. I condemn this nefarious terrorist attack and wish Allah’s mercy upon our martyrs.”
Reiterating that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had been in Istanbul for the 3+3 Regional Cooperation Platform on Friday, President Erdoğan said, "I would also like to see you, my esteemed friend, in Türkiye as soon as possible."
Relaying that efforts were underway to solve the challenges in bank payments between the two countries, President Erdoğan added:
"Our respective ministries of treasury and finance, as well as central banks, are in communication to establish a mechanism for this purpose. An inter-institutional work has already been initiated between our ministries of trade. Last week, we conveyed a list of non-sanctioned, no-trade-risk products to your delegation. Following an agreement on the list, we will focus on a platform for payments."
Putin condemns terrorist attack on TAI
During his meeting with President Erdoğan, President Putin of Russia condemned the terrorist attack on TAI and expressed his condolences.
In his speech prior to the meeting, Putin stated that he is interested in the cooperation of Türkiye with BRICS, adding, "Given the authority and special geopolitical role of your country connecting the east and west of the Eurasian Continent, we see significant opportunities here."
Putin emphasised that the long-standing partnership experience in numerous fields is the foundation of the good neighbourly and constructive relations between Russia and Türkiye.
Putin announced that they will deliberate on the enhancement of their collaboration in the areas of commerce and technology during today's meeting, acknowledging the swift advancements made by the two nations in this domain.
Trade volume between the two countries reached 55.4 billion dollars
Putin highlighted the fact that the trade volume between the two countries reached 55.4 billion dollars last year and said, "In the January-August period of this year, this indicator increased by another 6.2 per cent."
Putin stated that Russian companies were implementing significant projects in Türkiye's metallurgical and automotive manufacturing sectors and that Russia remained a reliable natural gas supplier to Türkiye.
Putin expressed that they exported 20.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas via the TurkStream and Blue Stream pipelines and also said, "The preparations for the implementation of our initiative to establish an international natural gas hub are underway. I am confident that this will significantly improve regional energy security by implementing more balanced pricing mechanisms."
Russians top the list of foreigners visiting Türkiye
Remarking that the work at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) continues in all four units, Putin said, "Mr President, as you mentioned, we expect the plant to begin supplying electricity to the Republic of Türkiye's power grid next year."
According to Putin, 6.3 million Russian citizens visited Türkiye last year, ranking first in the field of tourism.
Putin indicated that the two countries worked closely together in the event of natural disasters, noting that Russian planes helped extinguish fires in Türkiye last year.
Middle East and Ukraine Issues
Stating that they will also discuss international developments today, Putin said:
"Your attendance at this event will reflect the important role Türkiye plays in solving the pressing problems of the modern world. The most pressing issue at the moment is the tragic developments in the Middle East. Russia and Türkiye share closely aligned principled positions on these matters, and we are convinced that a permanent political and diplomatic resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict can only be realised through the widely accepted two-state formula sanctioned by the United Nations Security Council."
Putin stated that during his meeting with President Erdoğan, they would address the peace process in Syria and the situation in Ukraine.
Condemning the terrorist attack against TAI, Putin said, "But, before we get started, I would like to express my condolences for the terrorist attack. You know how we feel about this; we condemn all such manifestos, regardless of their motivation."
The meeting at Kazan EXPO, where the BRICS Summit was held, lasted about an hour.
During the meeting, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar, Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat, Presidency's Head of Communications Fahrettin Altun, National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Director İbrahim Kalın, Chief Advisor to the President on Foreign Policy and Security Akif Çağatay Kılıç and AK Party Deputy Chairman and Party Spokesperson Ömer Çelik were also present.
