Relationship dossier
Turkey
Ukraine
Relationship assessment
Strategic cooperation and support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, alongside limits arising from Turkey’s ties with Russia.
Turkey toward Ukraine
+40Turkey has rejected Russia’s annexation of Crimea and supported Ukraine’s territorial integrity. It has cooperated with Ukraine on defense, including the sale of Bayraktar TB2 drones, and facilitated negotiations during the 2022 invasion. Turkey also joined Ukraine and Russia in the 2022 Black Sea Grain Initiative. Ankara did not join Western sanctions against Russia.
Ukraine toward Turkey
+40Ukraine has pursued strategic and defense cooperation with Turkey, including through bilateral mechanisms and the 2022 free trade agreement. Kyiv has also worked with Ankara on the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Ukraine’s relationship with Turkey is shaped in part by Ankara’s support for its territorial integrity and its continued economic ties with Russia.
Overall relationship
+40The relationship combines sustained strategic, defense, and economic cooperation with a significant difference over Turkey’s approach to Russia. Turkey’s support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, defense links, and role in the Black Sea Grain Initiative are substantial features, while its refusal to join Western sanctions limits alignment.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Turkey has supported Ukraine’s territorial integrity and rejected Russia’s annexation of Crimea, while developing defense and economic cooperation with Kyiv. Turkey also facilitated negotiations during the 2022 invasion and helped broker the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Ukraine and Turkey signed a free trade agreement in 2022. Ankara’s continued relations with Moscow and decision not to join Western sanctions on Russia limit the extent of alignment.
Areas of tension
- Turkey’s continued economic ties with Russia and refusal to join Western sanctions have limited alignment with Ukraine’s approach to the war.
Key developments
Turkey and Ukraine signed a free trade agreement.
Turkey announced that it would apply the Montreux Convention’s restrictions on warship passage through the straits following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Turkey, Ukraine, Russia, and the United Nations signed the Black Sea Grain Initiative in Istanbul.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of defense and trade cooperation have changed amid the war.
- The longer-term effect of Turkey’s continued economic ties with Russia on bilateral cooperation is unclear.