Turkey announces discussion of extending grain deal with Ukraine and Russia

Kyiv, Moscow and Ankara at the level of deputy ministers will discuss the extension of the grain deal, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said in an interview with Habertürk TV channel. According to him, contacts with the Russian and Ukrainian sides continue.

“We agreed that in the coming days, representatives of Russia, Ukraine and Turkey at the level of deputy ministers will meet to discuss issues related to the grain initiative,” said Minister (quote from TASS).

The grain deal was concluded on July 22, 2022 by representatives of Turkey and the UN, on the one hand, and representatives of Russia and Ukraine, on the other. Separate agreements were signed with Moscow and Kiev: the first was for the export of Ukrainian grain from three ports, including Odessa, Yuzhny and Chernomorsk, the second was for assistance in the export of Russian grain and fertilizers. Moscow has repeatedly noted that the second part of the deal is not being implemented.

On March 14, Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Alexander Grushko announced the extension of the grain deal for 60 days and the confirmation of its package nature. The agreement expires May 18. On April 25, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the situation around the agreement had reached a dead end, and pointed to the unwillingness to remove obstacles to the export of Russian fertilizers, despite their shortage, and also to connect Rosselkhozbank to SWIFT.

The state and prospects of the grain deal remain not very good, some of the agreements have not yet been implemented, Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the Russian president, said on April 28.