- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Russian President Vladimir Putin is considering a solution to the suspended Black Sea grain initiative.
- Putin said he was ready to “consider the possibility of reviving the grain agreement” provided that Russian agricultural products were “fully included” in the new agreement.
- As part of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, more than 1,000 ships transport almost 33 million tons of Ukrainian agricultural products.
WASHINGTON – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday that a solution to the suspended Black Sea grain initiative could be reached “in a short period of time.”
The agreement – negotiated in July 2022 between Turkey, the United Nations, Ukraine and Russia – helped ease the Kremlin’s naval blockade in the Black Sea and establish a humanitarian corridor for agricultural exports.
“We believe that in a short time we will find a solution that meets expectations,” Erdogan said during a news conference in Sochi, a Black Sea resort, according to a Portal report.
Read more: Global food insecurity caused by the war between Russia and Ukraine is high on the agenda as the US takes over the presidency of the UN Security Council
“Ukraine must, above all, soften its approaches so that joint steps can be taken with Russia,” the Turkish president added.
Putin said he was ready to “consider the possibility of reviving the grain agreement” provided that Russian agricultural products were “fully included” in the new agreement. The Russian leader also blamed Western governments for fomenting a global food crisis following Moscow’s withdrawal from the Black Sea grain agreement.
“There is no physical shortage of food,” Putin told reporters after the bilateral meeting with Erdogan. The Russian leader added that food prices did not rise after Moscow withdrew from the agreement.
CNBC Politics
Read more of CNBC’s political coverage:
As part of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, more than 1,000 ships carrying almost 33 million tons of Ukrainian wheat, barley, corn and sunflower flour departed from three Black Sea ports to global destinations.
The agreement also allowed 725,167 tons of wheat to be transported on World Food Program ships to some of the most food insecure countries on earth, including Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
Russia left the agricultural agreement almost a year after all parties met in Istanbul to sign the deal. The Kremlin had previously said that only Ukraine benefited from the pact.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) speaks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) during their meeting on September 4, 2023 in Sochi, Russia.
Contributor | Getty Images News | Getty Images
After the failure of the Black Sea grain initiative, Russian forces fired missiles at Ukrainian ports and agricultural facilities, sending wheat prices soaring for three days.
Additionally, America’s largest spy agency said last week that Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine had disrupted global food security and triggered not only higher prices but also political instability in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries.
Read more: US Intelligence: Food insecurity caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine sparked instability in other countries
The unclassified 8-page report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees the country’s 18 intelligence agencies, also said Russian forces stole about 6 million tons of Ukrainian wheat, probably for export.
The Kremlin has previously denied that its troops have attacked civilian infrastructure and carried out looting in Ukraine.