Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday said Turkey would use the authority given by the 1936 Montreux Convention pact on passage from its straits to prevent escalation of the Russia and Ukraine war.

Erdogan added that Turkey could not abandon its ties with Ukraine and Russia but stressed he was “very saddened” by Moscow’s aggression on its southern neighbor.

“Turkey is determined to use the authority given by the Montreux Convention on Turkish Straits in a manner to prevent escalation of the Russia-Ukraine crisis,” Erdogan said in a press conference after a Cabinet meeting in the capital Ankara.

Source: TREND News Agency