Türkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will likely meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Russia, although the meeting was initially expected to take place in Ankara, Yeni Şafak reported.
Yeni Şafak, citing sources close to the administration, said that the alleged preparation of Erdoğan’s visit to Russia is considered “critical” for the agreements with the Kremlin regarding the continuation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
According to the source, Ankara is of the opinion that creating a new route for grain exports by sea without Russia’s participation is an inadvisable idea.
On 2 August, Putin and Erdoğan discussed the grain deal and a possible Putin’s visit to Türkiye on the phone.
On 17 July 2023, the Russian Federation withdrew from the Black Sea grain initiative, an UN-brokered agreement to unblock Ukraine’s ports and export its grain, and stated that it would not guarantee that it would not attack civilian vessels after that date. The Ukrainian defense ministry mirrored Russia’s threats to ships at sea.
Since the agreement’s collapse, Türkiye has been in contact with both Ukraine and Russia, discussing the options for its restoration.
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