Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on boosting bilateral ties, and he reiterated Ankara’s willingness to contribute to a peaceful resolution of the Ukrainian conflict, according to Erdogan’s office on Friday.

According to Turkey’s Directorate of Communications, the latest developments in Ukraine, which Russia invaded earlier this year, were also mentioned during the discussion.

NATO member Turkey has close relations with both Ukraine and Russia and has sought to balance ties during the war, rejecting Western sanctions on Moscow while criticising the Russian invasion and supplying Kyiv with armed drones.

Along with the United Nations, Turkey brokered the July deal to unlock Ukrainian grain exports from its Black Sea ports, in what remains the only significant diplomatic breakthrough in the seven-month-old conflict.

Ankara’s relations with Russia are complex, with the two countries cooperating closely on energy supplies while being at odds over Syria, Libya and Azerbaijan.