ISTANBUL

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that he will speak with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan following Russia’s recognition of Ukraine’s breakaway regions of Luhansk and Donetsk as independent states.

Zelensky said on Twitter that he spoke with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson after a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC).

“Now we are urgently preparing an address, and after that, talks with European Council President Charles Michel and Erdogan,” he added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin officially recognized Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions as independent states Monday and signed agreements with their separatist leaders in the Kremlin.