ANKARA: Ukraine has asked Turkey to close the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits to Russian ships and wants sanctions imposed on Moscow, Ukraine's ambassador to Ankara said on Thursday, after Russia launched air and ground assaults on its neighbour.

NATO member Turkey Ukraine, which shares a maritime Black Sea border with Ukraine and Russia, opposes sanctions but has called Russian steps against Ukraine unacceptable.

Under a 1936 pact, Ankara has control over the straits and can limit warship passages if it is threatened or during wartime.

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"We are calling for the air space, Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits to be closed. We have conveyed our relevant demand to the Turkish side. At the same time, we want sanctions imposed on the Russian side," Ambassador Vasyl Bodnar told a news conference in Ankara.