A recent request to close the Bosporus and Dardanelles to Russian ships has put Turkey in a difficult position.
Speaking during a public event in Denizli on Thursday, main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said Turkey should “remain loyal” to the Montreux Convention, which is “very important for its security.”
“The Montreux Convention should not be applied differently at the suggestion of others. Any wrong step can take a heavy toll [on Turkey],” the Turkish Minute website quoted Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as saying.
A recent request by Ukraine to close the Bosporus and Dardanelles to Russian ships has put Turkey, which has good relations with both countries, in a difficult position.
Under the 1936 Montreux Convention, Ankara has control over the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits and can limit warship passage if it is threatened or during wartime.