Kremlin says Putin accepted Erdoğan's invitation to visit Turkey

Anadolu Agency - Duvar English 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has accepted the invitation of his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to visit Turkey, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Jan. 27.

The meeting will be held when the COVID-19 pandemic situation and the schedules of the two leaders allow for it, Peskov told reporters at a daily briefing in Moscow.

"President Putin gratefully accepted this invitation. And they agreed that as soon as a) the epidemiological situation and b) the schedules allow, he will definitely take advantage of this invitation," Peskov said.

Peskov noted that due to the pandemic there has been "a certain pause" in holding meetings of the intergovernmental commission and the High-Level Cooperation Council, which is headed by the two presidents.

The topic was discussed several times in recent presidential contacts, and Erdoğan said he was ready to host all these events in Turkey, Peskov said.

Israel's Herzog to visit Turkey next month 

Meanwhile, Erdoğan also announced on Jan. 26 that Israel's President Isaac Herzog will visit Turkey before mid-February and a new page will be opened in the strained bilateral relations.

Turkey and Israel have been holding talks to amend ties over a possible natural gas pipeline project between the two countries.

Touted as an alternative to help ease Europe's dependence on Russian gas, the 1,900-km (1,180-mile) project would initially be expected to carry 10 billion cubic meters of gas a year. But it remains unclear whether the project will ever go ahead.