Moscow is working to complete the preparations for President Vladimir Putin’s long-anticipated visit to Türkiye for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.
Peskov also said Moscow hopes Putin and Erdoğan can hold talks on the sidelines of an upcoming BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan, where Türkiye’s formal bid to join the bloc will be up for consideration.
Putin’s trip to Ankara has been delayed several times since last year, reportedly over security concerns, especially amid the Ukraine war.
However, according to the Middle East Eye (MEE) citing sources familiar with the matter, Putin’s conditions to visit Ankara are the primary reason for the constant delay.
Putin would like to fly to Türkiye with Russian fighter jet escorts, the sources said, possibly concerned by Ukraine’s ability to shoot down aircraft on the flight route.
Moscow’s demand to fly in with Russian fighter jets, and also possibly land them in Turkish territory, is a complicated matter, as NATO air-defense systems in the country could perceive such aircraft as enemy targets.
One person familiar with the talks said Türkiye isn’t likely to shut NATO systems down to accommodate the Russian request.
In the latest deliberations over a visit, Russian and Turkish officials have discussed Putin arriving in the first week of October.
Yet the specific fighter jet demand makes the scheduling and organization of the visit very unlikely, sources said. The last time Putin visited Ankara was in 2014.
Two former Turkish ambassadors, who were previously closely involved in diplomatic protocol surrounding the visits of foreign heads of state, told MEE that the Russian request was very unusual.
“The Turkish government may send fighter jets to escort foreign heads of states as a gesture,” said one of the former ambassadors.
“Nonetheless, I cannot recall any visit where the foreign heads of state would like to bring over his or her country’s fighter jets along.”
A third former Turkish ambassador said there was no specific protocol governing such a demand, leaving it up to debate.
MEE wrote that Russian demands weren’t limited to fighter jets and that officials complain the three largest hotel venues in Ankara are U.S.-owned businesses, which makes it “unsafe” for Putin.
This raises the possibility of whether Ankara could provide a government guest house to host Putin, a highly unusual protocol that has no recent comparisons.
