Putin calls Erdogan and criticizes Ukraine’s use of Turkish drones

“The Russian president indicated that Kiev is following a destructive line aimed at sabotaging the Minsk agreements,” the Kremlin said in a statement.

Putin denounced the “provocative activity” of the Ukrainian armed forces in the conflict zone, including “the use of Turkish-made Bayraktar attack drones.”

During the conversation, “It was emphasized that Kiev should abandon any attempt to conduct military action in Donbass,” according to the official statement.

The text noted the importance of fully respecting all agreements, including those reached in the Normandy formula (Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France).”

Putin accused the West of “aggravating the situation by providing Kiev with modern lethal weapons” and carrying out “provocative military exercises” in the Black Sea.

Putin also considered that Germany and France, the main mediators to try to resolve the conflict in the Donbass, are urging Kiev to violate the Minsk peace agreements, and to lead the negotiations “to a dead end.”

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who on Thursday discussed the Ukraine crisis in Stockholm with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, had previously informed him of Moscow’s concerns about Ukraine’s militarization over Kiev’s supply of Turkish and Western weapons.

These statements come at a time of total tension between Russia and Ukraine, and when Moscow is accused of concentrating its forces on the border, with the aim of an eventual offensive. The Kremlin denies any military plans and accuses Kiev of preparing a military adventure against Russian-speaking separatists in the east of the country.

In late October, the Ukrainian army used a Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 UAV to neutralize the pro-Russian D-30 howitzer.

This shot was criticized by Russia as well as by France and Germany, as they acted as mediators.

The use of combat drones in several recent conflicts, such as Libya or the clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan, has allowed the power imbalance to shift in favor of Turkey’s allies.

After the annexation of Crimea by Russia, Ukraine has been fighting pro-Russian separatist forces in the east of the country since the spring of 2014, a conflict that has claimed some 13,000 lives.