Russian President Vladimir Putin has communicated to Turkish President Erdogan that he would be open to resuming Ukrainian grain exports if certain conditions are met.
In a readout provided by Russia and Turkey, President Putin told President Erdogan that Russia would need “real guarantees from Kyiv about the strict observance of the Istanbul agreement, [particularly] about not using the humanitarian corridor for military purposes.” The statement from Putin comes after an attempted attack on Russia’s black sea fleet.
The Russian President also said that “a detailed investigation into the circumstances of this incident, and also after receipt of real guarantees from Kyiv of strict observance of the Istanbul agreements, in particular on the non-use of the humanitarian corridor for military purposes. Only after that will it be possible to consider the question of resuming work.”
The Turkish take:
Turkey said President Erdogan told President Putin he was “sure a solution-oriented cooperation will be established on the issue.
At the moment, Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the attack and has pushed back at claims they used the humanitarian corridor for military purposes. Ukraine has accused Russia of potentially staging the attack to end the humanitarian corridor.