Turkey-Russia relations are not going to die as a result of referenda

Program Director at the Russian International Affairs Council Ivan Timofeev expressed his opinion regarding the recent statement from Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, who said that Turkey would not recognise the referenda in Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions.

"I think that Turkey's response comes as no surprise. It will not affect the relations between Ankara and Moscow too much. The ties between the two countries are not going to change," the analyst said.

According to him, the relations between Russia and Turkey will not deteriorate at the moment. However, changes may occur in the future, he added.

Earlier, the Turkish Foreign Minister said that Turkey would not recognize the referenda about the inclusion of formerly Ukrainian regions into the Russian Federation.

"We have said this before and we say this again that we do not recognize the annexation of Crimea. We have already expressed our concerns and position on this matter to the Russian Federation," the minister said during a press conference.