OREANDA-NEWS. The invitation to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to visit Crimea remains valid, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasized.

Commenting on Monday the words of Erdogan, who expressed concern about the situation of the Crimean Tatars, the Kremlin representative noted that in this part the Russian side strongly disagrees with its Turkish partners. "We don't agree with the language used in this context. We have repeatedly talked about the groundlessness of any fears about the Crimean Tatars. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly explained to the Turkish leader the real state of affairs", Peskov said.

At a meeting with social activists in Simferopol on March 18, 2019, the Russian president announced that he had invited the Turkish president to open a cathedral mosque in Crimea, and that, according to Putin, he reacted positively to this proposal. The construction of the mosque began in Simferopol in October 2016, its opening is planned for April 2020.