Turkey President meets Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky, says 'don't want another Chernobyl'
Addressing a press conference, Erdogan said, "We are worried. We don't want another Chernobyl." This came during which he also assured the Ukrainian leader that Ankara was a firm ally.
FollowTurkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday warned of a nuclear disaster in Ukraine during his first face-to-face talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky since Russia's invasion began, echoing pleas from the UN's chief.
The in fighting around Europe's largest nuclear facility in Russian-controlled southern Ukraine has sparked severe warnings from leaders across the world, and UN chief Antonio Guterres cautioned during talks with Erdogan that any damage to the plant would be akin to "suicide".
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Addressing a press conference, Erdogan said, "We are worried. We don't want another Chernobyl." This came during which he also assured the Ukrainian leader that Ankara was a firm ally.
"While continuing our efforts to find a solution, we remain on the side of our Ukraine friends," Erdogan said.
Guterres said he was "gravely concerned" about the situation at the plant and that it had to be demilitarised, adding: "We must tell it like it is -- any potential damage to Zaporizhzhia is suicide".
Erdogan met with the Russian leader less than two weeks ago in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. The Turkish leader and Guterres were key brokers of a deal inked in Istanbul last month allowing for the resumption of grain exports from Ukraine after Russia's invasion blocked essential global supplies.
Ahead of the press conference with the Ukrainian President, the port authority announced that the 25th cargo ship under the deal had departed for Egypt carrying 33,000 tonnes of grain.
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Ukraine and Russia are two of the world's biggest grain exporters, and the halt in exports has seen grain prices soar and fears of a global food shortage mount.
Guterres said during the meeting with reporters that the sides hoped to intensify efforts to bolster operations at three southern ports designated to handle exports under the deal.
