As part of a visit to Turkey on March 8, 2024, Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited shipyards where corvettes for the Ukrainian Naval Forces are being built.
The visit comes as Zelenskyy continues to press other nations for more munitions and weaponry to halt the advance of Russian troops trying to make deeper gains into the Ukraine.
The corvettes are being built in accordance with the Strategy for the Development of the Naval Forces of Ukraine’s Armed Forces until 2036.
Zelenskyy inspected the readiness level and equipment of the Ivan Mazepa corvette, its technical characteristics, and capabilities.
This anti-submarine corvette of the Ada class is intended to become the future flagship of the Ukrainian Navy.
Construction of the Ivan Mazepa corvette began in April 2021. In September 2023, a solemn keel-laying ceremony took place.
It was planned that the corvette would be transferred to Ukraine in 2022, and by 2024, it would have entered service with the Ukrainian Navy.
However, due to the war initiated by Russia against Ukraine, the transfer of the corvette was postponed.
Aboard the ship, Zelenskyy met and spoke to the Ukrainian Navy personnel undergoing training on how to operate and maintain the vessel’s systems.
He thanked them for their service.
“Thank you for your service, for the fact that Ukraine is highly respected here. You know that we are expecting you in Ukraine. So that our Security and Defense Forces become even stronger.”
Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Additionally, Zelenskyy awarded two military personnel with medals recognizing their selfless actions in defending Ukraine’s state sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as exemplary performance of military duty.
Zelenskyy also inspected the construction of our second corvette of the Ada class and named it after Hetman Ivan Vyhovskyi.
The Ada class corvette is also intended to strengthen the naval fleet.
The Ukrainian President expressed gratitude to all involved in building such warships.
“I am extremely grateful for the partnership to President Erdogan of Turkey and to all defense companies of Türkiye and Ukraine, for working together to bring peace for Ukraine closer.”
Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Ada class corvettes are modern coastal zone ships capable of anti-submarine operations and open sea patrolling, with a wide use of stealth technology principles in their design.
The design and combat application concept of Ada class corvettes is similar to the concept of littoral combat ships of the Freedom class developed by Lockheed Martin for the U.S. Navy.
Ada class corvettes have more powerful armament, radar, and sonar systems.
Zelenskyy last visited Turkey last July, when he returned to Ukraine with a group of Ukrainian commanders who were in Turkey following a prison exchange deal, and were to remain on Turkish territory until the end of the war.
There was no explanation from Ankara or Kyiv about why they were allowed to return to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy Meets Erdogan
Also on Friday, Turkey’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Zelenskyy.
The closed-door meeting took place at the Dolmabahce Office in Istanbul.
At a press conference after their meeting, Zelenskyy said that talks between Ukraine and Turkey are always “sincere and fruitful.”
“The obvious priority is that we are trying to enhance our security and our strength as much as possible, to quickly restore a just peace for all our land and all our people, and for the Black Sea region,” he asserted.
Zelenskyy thanked Erdogan and the people of Turkey for their support of Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity.
He separately expressed gratitude to the Turkish leader for efforts to release Ukrainian citizens from Russian captivity.
Moreover, Zelenskyy disclosed that he submitted a list of our Ukrainian citizens, including Crimean Tatars, “who have been repressed by Russia in Ukraine’s occupied territories and are being held in Russian prisons and camps under extremely harsh and inhumane conditions.”
“We must release them all, both warriors and civilians,” he said.
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