Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East during a phone call on Friday, according to the Kremlin.
The two leaders also said any settlement should be based on compromise and take into account what the Kremlin described as the legitimate interests of all states in the region.
The Middle East conflict began more than a month ago after US and Israeli strikes on Iran, setting off fighting across the region that has disrupted trade, energy flows and transport routes while rattling the global economy.
In a statement the Kremlin said Putin and Erdoğan shared the view that the war’s military escalation was causing serious consequences not only for the region but also for the wider world, especially in energy, trade and logistics.
They also discussed Black Sea security and what the Kremlin described as the need for coordinated steps to ensure stability in the area. The statement accused Ukraine of trying to strike gas infrastructure linking Russia and Turkey.
Gazprom said on Thursday that Russian forces had repelled a drone attack on the Russkaya compressor station, the starting point of the TurkStream pipeline, which carries Russian gas to Turkey and on to parts of Europe including Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia.
Ukraine did not immediately comment on the claim. Kyiv has repeatedly targeted Russian energy infrastructure during the war, saying such strikes are aimed at weakening Moscow’s ability to fund its military campaign. Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s energy facilities since the start of its full scale invasion in 2022 have also left millions without heat or electricity at various points in the war.
© Agence France-Presse