According to the Kremlin, at their meeting in Sochi, on the Black Sea, the two agreed to increase trade between the two countries “despite current regional and global challenges”. For example, conditions of cooperation should be facilitated for Russian and Turkish companies.
The Turkish Akkuyu nuclear power plant, which is being built by a Russian state-owned company, was also discussed at the four-hour meeting, Nowak said. Furthermore, both sides agreed that Turkey would pay Russian gas in rubles in the future.
Erdogan meets Putin in Sochi
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan met in the Russian seaside resort of Sochi on Friday. Putin thanked Erdogan in advance for brokering the conclusion of the grain deal in a statement in Sochi. Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine continues.
Commitment to grain deals
Putin and Erdogan also committed to the grain deal that Russia and Ukraine signed through Turkey and the United Nations. The need to “ensure full implementation of the package deal” was stressed, Russian agencies cited a joint statement by the two heads of state. This also includes the unhindered export of Russian grains, as well as fertilizers and raw materials.
Two weeks ago, with Turkish mediation, among others, Moscow and Kyiv agreed to an agreement to release grain exports, which had been blocked in Ukraine for months because of Russia’s war of aggression. However, Russia has always emphasized that, in return, it expects the lifting of Western sanctions that indirectly affect its own exports of grain, food and fertilizer. This is what is meant when Moscow insists on the package character of the agreement.
More ships across the Black Sea
Last Monday, the first ship loaded with corn left the port of Odessa. Three more grain carriers followed on Friday. “The first caravan with Ukrainian grain left the ports of Greater Odessa,” Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Telegram. According to Ukrainian information, the three freighters are on their way to Turkey, Great Britain and Ireland. According to the Turkish Ministry of Defense, they will be inspected in Istanbul.
APA/AFP/Turkish Presidential Press Service/Murat Kula Erdogan with Putin in Sochi
Erdogan not only promoted the resumption of Ukrainian grain deliveries from Black Sea ports, Putin said in Sochi. “At the same time, a packaging solution was adopted for the smooth delivery of Russian food and fertilizers to world markets,” said the Russian president. He also praised the Turkstream pipeline project. Europe should thank Turkey for the uninterrupted supply of Russian gas, Putin said.
Coordinated action in Syria
The two presidents also assured each other that they would act in concert and solidarity in the fight against “all terrorist organizations in Syria”. Against Russian resistance, Turkey occupied areas in northern Syria with military operations against Kurdish militias. At the last meeting between Erdogan and Putin in mid-July, the Russian president made it clear that he rejected Turkey’s plans.
“Turkey has legitimate interests for security reasons, which we naturally take into account,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said before the meeting on Friday. However, it is “very important not to allow any measures that could lead to a destabilization of the situation in Syria or jeopardize the territorial and political integrity of Syria.”
Turkish combat drones are apparently not a problem
What was eagerly awaited was whether Putin and Erdogan would talk about a possible acquisition of Turkish combat drones by Russia. In the course of its war against Ukraine, Moscow had recently expressed interest in the Bayraktar TB2 weapons. CNN quoted Turk Erdogan as saying that Putin had suggested working with Turkey on the Baykar drones.
Shortly after the start of the Russian war of aggression, Erdogan said he would not rule out arms deals with Russia. If Russia developed the drones together with Turkey, Moscow would also have access to technology from a NATO member state. It is not immediately known whether the matter has been raised.
The conversation lasted four hours, according to the Turkish presidential palace and confirmed by Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov. “Now the world is looking at Sochi again,” Erdogan said at the start of the meeting. A press conference afterwards was not planned. Turkey depends on grain, energy and tourists from Russia. In 2020, nearly 34% of Turkey’s gas imports came from there. Russian gas pipelines run through Turkey. Turkey is a member of NATO, but does not participate in Western sanctions against Russia – which increases the country’s importance to Russian companies, for example.
War in Ukraine continues
According to Ukrainian sources, Russian troops have meanwhile launched a major offensive in the Donetsk region, in the east of the country. “In the Donetsk area, the enemy is conducting an offensive operation in the direction of Bakhmut and Avdiivka,” the Ukrainian General Staff said in its situation report. With the fighting, Russian troops are trying to put themselves in a good starting position to capture the cities of Soledar and Bakhmut and expand their control to the area west of Donetsk.
Moscow and Kyiv also accused each other of bombing the Zaporizhia nuclear plant in Ukraine. On Friday, the Ukrainian army bombed the plant’s facilities, several Russian agencies reported, citing the occupation administration of the city of Enerhodar, where the plant is located. Two power lines were cut and a fire started. The information could not be independently verified. The Ukrainian side, on the other hand, said the Russians themselves bombed the area.