Erdogan calls Black Sea ship attacks unacceptable

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sat down with Volodymyr Zelensky in Istanbul on October 31 and said attacks on civilian ships in the Black Sea were unacceptable from either side.

The summit came three days after three drones struck the cargo ship Contship Jet in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, forcing the crew to abandon ship. The Contship Jet sank the next day. Turkey's defense ministry had already called on both Russia and Ukraine to stop striking merchant ships two days before the presidents met.

Erdogan told reporters he raised the Black Sea situation directly with Zelensky. He asked Moscow and Kyiv to treat all non-military ships as off limits, whatever their flag or route. Both leaders described the meeting as substantive. Zelensky said he arrived for important talks; no formal agreement was announced.

Turkey has tried to keep shipping lines open since Russia's 2022 invasion interrupted grain exports. Erdogan's call on October 31 renewed that push, naming the Contship Jet sinking as a reason the attacks had to stop.