Erdogan has once again set himself up as a mediator. He maintains good relations with the two belligerent countries and Turkey is a leading NATO member that has not declared sanctions against Russia.
Earlier, during the war, there was already contact between Ukraine and Russia at the level of ministers in Turkey. Erdogan has taken the initiative to keep Ukrainian ports and the Black Sea out of the fray with an international agreement. This has enabled the export of many Ukrainian agricultural products since July.
On Wednesday, Erdogan already attracted a lot of attention in Astana for other reasons. After a meeting with Kazakhstan President Kassim-Jomart Tokayev, he went to play table tennis with his host in the palace and did not hold the table tennis bat by the handle, to the amusement of Turkish media, among others.