Kilicdaroglu says won't 'break our friendly relations' with Russia in case he wins elections

Kemal Kilicdaroglu, main challenger of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, said on Friday that in case he wins the elections, he won't break relations with Russia, propose a new peace initiative on Ukraine but support NATO's expansion, Report informs, citing his interview with Reuters.

"We want to maintain our relations, we don't want to break our friendly relations but we will not allow interference in our internal matters," he said regarding his own statements of having concrete evidence of Russia's responsibility for the release of "deep fake" online content ahead of Sunday's presidential elections. His statement were earlier strongly denied by Russian president's spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

The 74-year-old former bureaucrat stressed that Türkiye has close economic links with Russia and signalled that he would pursue a fine balance in foreign policy over relations with Moscow.

"We would pursue a peace-oriented foreign policy that prioritises Türkiye's national interest. Our priority our national interests and to act in line with the modern world," Kilicdaroglu added.

Kilicdaroglu also said he would push for another peace initiative between Russia and Ukraine once he wins the Sunday vote.

"It is very important for us, and for the whole world, if we succeed to reach a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine. But we should make it clear that we do not find it right for any country to occupy another country," he said.