OREANDA-NEWS. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the 76th UN General Assembly in the United States and thanked him for his words about the non-recognition of Crimea as Russian. This is stated on the website of the President of Ukraine.

"The Head of the Ukrainian state thanked the Turkish leader for his firm position on the non — recognition of the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation,"- the message reads.

Zelensky also noted "the strategic nature of Ukrainian-Turkish relations." According to him, it is important for the states to increase bilateral cooperation in the political, trade and economic, humanitarian and military-technical fields. Zelensky also thanked Erdogan for the support of the Crimean Platform forum.

In addition, at the meeting, the presidents, according to Zelensky's office, discussed cooperation in the field of energy, in particular, "diversification of energy carriers", the release of "illegally detained" Crimean Tatars and security in the Black Sea region.

Earlier, speaking at the 76th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, Erdogan said that his Ankara attaches great importance to maintaining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and added that Turkey does not recognize the "annexation" of Crimea by Russia.