ISTANBUL: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday threw his support behind a call by Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky for an aerial and sea truce in the Ukraine war.
“We support the idea of establishing a ceasefire as soon as possible and stopping attacks in the air and at sea as a confidence-building measure between the parties,” Erdogan told an online meeting organized by the EU.
“Our efforts to reach an agreement that will guarantee the safety of navigation in the Black Sea align with this approach,” he said.
His statement came shortly after the Ukrainian president repeated his demand for “silence in the skies... and also silence at sea,” on X following a “massive” Russian attack on the country’s energy grid overnight.
And on Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron said London and Paris were proposing a one-month truce in Ukraine “in the air, at sea and on energy infrastructure.”
Erdogan, whose country has twice hosted Ukraine-Russia talks at the start of the war, also said both sides must be seated at the table for any peace negotiations to work.
“Today, we draw attention to the importance of a solid diplomatic ground where both warring parties will be at the table for a just, lasting and honorable peace,” he said.
NATO member Turkiye has sought to maintain good relations with both of its Black Sea neighbors since the Russian invasion three years ago and has twice hosted direct talks aimed at ending the war.
Turkiye’s Erdogan says backs air, sea truce in Ukraine war
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Turkiye’s Erdogan says backs air, sea truce in Ukraine war
- Turkish leader: ‘Our efforts to reach an agreement that will guarantee the safety of navigation in the Black Sea align with this approach’
- NATO member Turkiye has sought to maintain good relations with both of its Black Sea neighbors since the Russian invasion three years ago
Norway launches probe of Middle East diplomat and husband over Epstein links
- Mona Juul resigned from her position as ambassador to Jordan and Iraq
- Juul and her husband Terje Rod-Larsen played key roles in the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations which led to the Oslo Accords
OSLO: Norwegian police said Monday they have launched an “aggravated corruption” investigation against a high-profile diplomat, Mona Juul, and her husband Terje Rod-Larsen, over the couple’s links to late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The police economic crime unit Okokrim said in statement that the probe began last week and that an Oslo residence was searched on Monday, as well as a residence belonging to a witness.
“We have launched an investigation to determine whether any criminal offenses have been committed. We are facing a comprehensive and, by all accounts lengthy investigation,” Okokrim chief Pal Lonseth, said.
Juul, 66, and Rod-Larsen, 78, played key roles in the secret Israeli-Palestinian negotiations which led to the Oslo Accords of the early 1990s.
Epstein left $10 million in his will to the couple’s two children, according to Norwegian media.
“Among other things, Okokrim will investigate whether she received benefits in connection to her position,” the statement said.
On Sunday, the foreign ministry announced that Juul had resigned from her position as ambassador to Jordan and Iraq.
“Juul’s contact with the convicted abuser Epstein has shown a serious lapse in judgment,” Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said in connection to the announcement.
She had already been temporarily suspended last week pending an internal investigation by the ministry into her alleged links to Epstein, who died in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.
Norway’s political and royal circles have been thrust into the eye of the Epstein storm, including the CEO of the World Economic Forum Borge Brende.
Former prime minister Thorbjorn Jagland, is also being investigated for “aggravated corruption” over links to Epstein while he was chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee — which awards the Nobel Peace Prize — and as secretary general of the Council of Europe.
Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit has also come under scrutiny for her relationship with Epstein, which on Friday she said she “deeply regretted.”
On Monday, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store voiced support for the establishing of an independent commission set up by Parliament, to fully examine the nature of the ties between these figures and Epstein.
