Lviv, 19 August 2022 (TDI): United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the President of Turkiye, Recep T. Erdogan visited Ukraine, at the diplomatic request of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, on Thursday.
Today, we arrived in Lviv for a one-day working visit at the invitation of President Zelensky of Ukraine.
We assessed all aspects of 🇹🇷🇺🇦 ties with Mr Zelensky and held a trilateral summit with the participation of UN Secretary-General António Guterres. pic.twitter.com/eE2d6HLKXG
— Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (@RTErdogan) August 18, 2022
The three leaders held trilateral talks at Lviv, Ukraine, and discussed multiple agendas related to its existing conflict with Russia. It is the second visit of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres since the conflict between Ukraine with Russia started in February.
This was Turkish President, Erdogan’s first official visit to Ukraine since the start of the conflict with Moscow.
During the meeting, President Erdogan said that conflict will be ended if both sides, including Russian President Putin, are taken into confidence.
The Secretary-General that he had some hope for the following trilateral talks. Zelensky, Erdogan, and Guterres also discussed the issues of a prisoner exchange and bringing confidence-building measures between Kyiv and Moscow.
The points of nuclear security, the visit of the IAEA and UN’s nuclear inspectors, and non-traditional security threats like food crisis and mediation were also discussed.
They also discussed the investigation of Olenivka Detention Center through the UN’s fact-finding mission.
Focus on Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP)
President Zelensky called for the protection of ZNPP and urged the international community to prevent a nuclear catastrophe. He stressed that militarization in ZNPP “can have globally catastrophic consequences for the whole world”.
Secretary-General Guterres supported Zelensky in his remarks and called for collective action. He also added that the demilitarization procedure should be initiated as it is a civilian establishment.
Also Read: First Shipment of Ukrainian Grain leaves Odesa
Grain Deal and Food Diplomacy
In the meeting, Secretary Generals stressed that the food crisis can only be countered if the states get the supply of Ukrainian food products and Russian food and fertilizers. He added that 560,000 metric tons of Grain are making their way to global food markets.
He also added that Ukrainian food supplies are now being delivered to those regions that are hit by the hunger crisis. Secretary General mentioned that 21 ships had already reached Istanbul that will supply foods to global markets.
The UN-chartered vessels will supply grain to the global food markets to counter the food crisis. Guterres has called the deal of the UN and Turkiye with Ukraine for food supplies a “victory for diplomacy”.
