Erdogan opposes Ukraine use of U.S. long range missiles, urges restraint

ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan opposes a U.S. decision to allow Ukraine to use long-range missiles to attack inside Russia, saying it would further enflame the conflict, according to a readout shared by his office on Wednesday.

Ukraine used U.S. ATACMS missiles to strike Russian territory on Tuesday, taking advantage of newly granted permission from the outgoing administration of U.S. President Joe Biden on the 1,000th day of the war in Ukraine.

On the same day, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a policy document that lowers the threshold for Moscow to use nuclear weapons in response to attacks by an enemy using conventional weapons.

“Biden’s step would be interpreted as a move to enflame the war and to ensure that it never ends but spreads,” Erdogan told reporters on his flight back to Turkey from Brazil, where he attended the G20 Summit.

“This step will not only escalate the conflict, but will also lead to a greater response by Russia,” he said, urging both Moscow and Kyiv to exercise restraint.

NATO member Turkey says it supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity, it has condemned the Russian invasion, and has provided Kyiv with military support.

But Turkey, a Black Sea neighbour of both Russia and Ukraine, also opposes Western sanctions against Moscow, with which it shares important defence, energy and tourism ties.

(Reporting by Huseyin Hayatsever; Editing by Jonathan Spicer, Daren Butler and Gareth Jones)