Putin to Make First Visit to NATO Country in Four Years

Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Turkey next month in a rare foreign trip to a NATO nation, according to a Kremlin announcement on Monday.

Yuri Ushakov, a top adviser to Putin on foreign policy matters, told the Interfax news outlet that "a visit is being prepared." As to the purpose of the visit, Ushakov added: "I can say that Ukrainian issues will probably be one of the main subjects of negotiations."

Though a key NATO nation, Turkey and its President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan serve as a rare diplomatic bridge between the Kremlin and its Western rivals. Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ankara has supported Ukraine with military supplies while refusing to join Western sanctions on Moscow.

Turkey has positioned itself as a mediator between the two nations, hosting two rounds of peace talks in Antalya and Istanbul in 2022. Turkey was also key to the Black Sea Grain Initiative that temporarily facilitated the export of agricultural products from southern Ukrainian ports amid Russia's naval blockade.

Putin last visited a NATO nation in 2020 when he traveled to Germany to meet with then-Chancellor Angela Merkel. The president's Western travel options have been limited by his war on Ukraine and the arrest warrant issued for him in 2023 by the International Criminal Court over alleged related crimes.

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.

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