Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek on Tuesday thanked Russia for supporting the country’s government during the coup attempt.
“I would like to thank you for support regarding recent events in Turkey, for supporting democracy and the Turkish government,” Simsek told Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich.
Dvorkovich said that Russia confirms “its official position on the inadmissibility of unconstitutional acts aimed at overthrowing current authorities.”
“We believe that Turkey should solve these problems in compliance with its legislation, constitution and sovereignty,” Dvorkovich said.
A group within the Turkish military attempted to stage a coup d’etat on July 15, using tanks and helicopters. The attempt was botched as the plotters failed to seize any senior government officials, or gain major support among the Turkish military. At least 208 people were killed and some 1,500 were injured in the failed coup.
Russia is ready to restore ties
According to Dvorkovich, Russia is ready for constructive talks with Turkey, but normalization of relations should be phased.
“We are ready for constructive talks. Our meeting will be followed by meetings of a ministerial level. I believe that normalization of our bilateral relations should be phased. We must gradually restore interaction in trade and economic sphere. We are going to discuss this algorithm today,” Dvorkovich said.
Deputy Prime Minister added that the two countries have good opportunities for expansion of trade, investment cooperation, including implementation of major projects, as well as recovery of tourist flows.
“It is necessary to create appropriate conditions and guarantees of security, let’s talk about it today,” he said, adding that Russia sees good prospects for restoring ties with Turkey.