This was stated by Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu, according to news agency Anadolu.
"Turkey has warned all coastal and non-coastal countries about the inadmissibility of the passage of warships through the country's straits," he said.
At the same time, the Minister noted that since the beginning of Russia's operation in Ukraine, there have been no requests for the passage of warships through the straits. He also stressed that Ankara will continue to follow the provisions of the Montreux Convention.
Also is was reported that Cavusoglu had a telephone conversation with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. It was said that the parties discussed the humanitarian situation that was developed due to recent events in Ukraine, and ways to reach an agreement on the cessation of hostilities in this country.
According to Article 19 of the Montreux Convention, aproved in 1936, merchant ships have free pass through both straits controlled by Turkey. Different regimes apply to warships of states that have access to the Black Sea and those that do not. The states with access to the Black sea can carry ships of any class through the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, while those that do not have such an access are subject to class and tonnage restrictions.
In wartime Turkey has additional powers to regulate the passage through the straits. Ankara may prohibit any country from to use the straits if it deems it a threat to regional or its own security.