UN secretary-general to visit Turkey before having talks in Russia, Ukraine: ministry

ANKARA, April 24 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will pay a visit to Turkey on Monday before having talks in Moscow and Kiev as part of efforts to resolve the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

The secretary-general will have a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the capital Ankara, Turkey's Foreign Ministry said on Sunday.

Guterres will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on April 26 and 28 respectively, a UN spokesman said Friday.

Guterres will visit Moscow on April 26 and have "a working meeting and lunch" with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for Guterres.

During his trip to Ukraine, Guterres will also have a working meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and meet with staff of UN agencies to discuss the scaling up of humanitarian assistance to Ukrainian people, Dujarric said.

Turkey has been playing a mediator role to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine as Ankara has close ties with both countries. In March, Turkey hosted foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia, as well as a meeting between the negotiation teams of the two countries.