ANKARA 

Russia’s ambassador to Turkiye said Wednesday that his country appreciated Ankara’s attitude to comply with the Montreux Straits Convention.

Aleksey Yerhov made the comments to a private Turkish TV channel interview about Russia's war on Ukraine.

Stressing that the Montreux Straits Convention is also closely related to them, Yerhov said: "I must also say that we appreciate Turkiye’s attitude to the protection and compliance of the Montreux Convention, an important document of international law."

"I believe that together we can reach a situation where all our interests, all our desires can be realized," he said, pointing out that Russia is in constant contact with the Turkish authorities about the use of Montreux and the straits.

Underlining that Russia wants to ensure its national security and that this has red lines, Yerhov said if Ukraine joins NATO, modern weapons that will be deployed on the territory of this country will pose a threat to their national security.

He said Russia has notified the US and NATO of their concerns to reduce tensions in the region and warned that it will take technical measures to address the issue, noting that its proposals have been constantly rejected.

Claiming that Ukraine launched a war against Russians in the east of the country in 2014, killing more than 13,000 civilians, Yerhov emphasized that Russia launched an "operation" to "disarm and de-Nazify Ukraine."

He said the Ukrainian military is trying to create the perception that Russia is targeting civilians by deploying weapons in civilian residential areas, suggesting that Ukrainians are also trying to present this situation to the public as a "crime against humanity."

Noting that sanctions against Russia were also tried in the 1920s and 1960s, Yerhov added: "Now we will learn how to make payments to our partners without Rolls Royce and Mercedes and without using SWIFT, and we will succeed.”

Over 2,000 civilians have been killed since Russia launched its war on Ukraine on Feb. 24, according to Ukrainian authorities, while the UN Refugee Agency estimates that more than 874,000 people have fled from Ukraine to neighboring countries.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, 498 Russian soldiers have been killed and 1,597 wounded in the fighting.

Over 2,870 Ukrainian soldiers and “nationalists” have also been killed, the ministry said late Wednesday.

*Writing by Merve Berker