Moscow welcomes the readiness of an unofficial Turkish delegation to visit Crimea, but recommends that they should not come to the peninsula via Ukrainian soil, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
He made the remarks during a press conference with his Slovak counterpart Miroslav Lajcak on Saturday.
"We have actively supported [the delegation's] trip to the Republic of Crimea, you are welcome; if there is such an interest, we are ready for this," Lavrov said.
According to him, "for obvious reasons, if the appeal is addressed to Russia to assist in visiting the Crimea, they need to use the normal route."
"We have transmitted this stance to Turkish partners; I'm sure if they have a sincere interest to see what was going on there, they will be able to do it", Lavrov added.
Earlier, it was reported that Turkey had formed a delegation, which will consider the observance of human rights in Crimea.
