(Istanbul) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan showed his confidence on Friday in the future of Ukrainian grain exports via the Black Sea, assuring that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin “agrees” with him on the principle of an extension of the agreement which expires on Monday evening.
“We are preparing to welcome Mr. Putin in August. Putin and I agree on the extension of the grain corridor in the Black Sea,” Erdogan told reporters who were waiting for him outside the mosque in Istanbul after Friday prayers.
The Turkish president said he had exchanged with the head of the Kremlin without saying when this call took place.
PHOTO PAVEL GOLOVKIN, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
The agreement that sealed the birth of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, signed in July 2022 in Istanbul, already renewed twice, expires Monday evening at midnight in Istanbul (5 p.m. Eastern time).
Over the past year, it has enabled nearly 33 million tonnes of cereals, mainly wheat and corn, to be taken out of Ukrainian ports despite the war.
Ukraine’s production is considered essential to prevent a surge in food prices on the world market, which could trigger a food crisis in the most vulnerable countries.
Already on Wednesday on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Mr. Erdogan had assured that “discussions are continuing”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr “Zelensky wants it and Putin has made suggestions. We are working on a solution that would take these proposals into account,” he said.
“No statement” in Moscow
In addition to Turkey, guarantor with the United Nations of the cereals agreement signed in July 2022 with Russia and Ukraine, the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is at the maneuver and the European Union has also entered the game. , with a meeting taking place near Brussels on Thursday and Friday.
Referring also to the letter that Mr. Guterres sent to Vladimir Putin to guarantee his consent, Mr. Erdogan also on Friday “hoped that with this letter we will ensure the extension of the grain corridor, with our joint efforts and those of Russia” .
Questioned by the Russian press agencies, the Kremlin spokesman did not confirm Mr. Erdogan’s statements, taken up by the official Turkish media, including the Anadolu agency.
“There is no statement on this subject from the Russian side,” replied Dmitry Peskov simply.
In New York, the spokesman for Mr. Guterres just confirmed the continuation of discussions between the parties involved: “Discussions are ongoing, WhatsApp messages are sent, Signal messages are sent and exchanged. We are also awaiting a response to Mr. Guterres’ letter to Mr. Putin earlier this week.
He did not rule out “an announcement” possible until Monday: “If there is a clear announcement, one way or another over the weekend, we will have something to say and then you can very well to see the Secretary General appear,” added Stéphane Dujarric.
Vladimir Putin blew hot and cold a few days before the end of the agreement.
Thursday evening, he judged that “not a single one” of the Russian requests had been taken into account at this stage. “We will think about what we are going to do, we still have a few days for that,” he added.
On July 4, the Kremlin had already announced that it saw “no reason” to extend this agreement, complaining of obstacles to its own deliveries of agricultural products, in particular fertilizers which serve many southern countries such as Brazil.
Mr. Guterres wishes, to convince him, to remove the obstacles to these Russian exports, also planned for July 2022 by a parallel agreement, by “eliminating the obstacles to the financial transactions of the Agricultural Bank of Russia”.
The UN boss also participated in discussions Thursday and Friday near Brussels with the European Union, which imposed financial sanctions on Russian banks.