Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba: Kyiv will not make concessions on the grain deal
[Regnum] Ukraine does not intend to make concessions on the resumption of the grain deal, despite the call for such a step by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan . This statement was made by the head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Dmitry Kuleba , according to the publication “Strana. ua".
As Kuleba clarified, he considers the position of the Ukrainian authorities fair, and Kiev, according to him, should not become a hostage to "Russian blackmail" .
“Our position is fair – we should no longer be hostages of Russian blackmail, when Russia creates problems and then invites everyone to solve them,” the Ukrainian edition quotes Kuleba.
The head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry specified that before the meeting of Turkish President Erdogan with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Sochi, Ukrainian diplomats contacted the Turkish side and "clearly explained everything." Kuleba stressed that before making a decision in Kyiv, they want to hear from their Turkish colleagues after their return from Sochi and find out all the details of the summit.
Kuleba noted that the Ukrainian side intends to defend its positions on the grain deal, including sanctions pressure on Russia.
Earlier , IA Regnum reported that, as Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba said, the Kiev authorities hope for a conversation between Turkish President Erdogan and Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky after a meeting with Russian President Putin in Sochi.
According to Kuleba, there is "trust" in relations between the Turkish and Ukrainian presidents.
In turn, Erdogan said that alternative proposals failed to provide a sustainable, safe and long-term model, which was the grain deal. He stressed that Ankara has repeatedly said that the requirements put forward by Russia on the grain deal must be fulfilled.
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Erdogan called on Kyiv to soften its approach to Moscow for the sake of a grain deal
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agrees with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that Kiev needs to change its approach to Moscow in order to extend the grain deal. The Turkish president stated this on September 4 at a press conference in Sochi after talks with the Russian leader.
“Yes, as Mr. President said, of course, Ukraine needs to soften its approach in order to take joint steps with Russia ,” Erdogan said.
He also called Moscow's expectations from the grain deal fair. The Turkish leader hopes that Ankara's package of proposals will help revive this Black Sea initiative.
Negotiations between Erdogan and Putin in Sochi lasted about three hours . In front of them, the Turkish president said that the grain deal is the most important issue for him, which he plans to discuss.
At the same time, after the talks, Putin said at a press conference that the West had deceived Russia about the humanitarian goals of the grain deal. He noted that they promised to export grain from Ukraine to the poorest countries, but 70% of the goods went to wealthy states, mainly members of the EU. Only 3% was exported to countries in need of food, the President noted.
The grain deal has been in effect since July 22, 2022. After the Russian part of the agreement had not been fulfilled for almost a year, the Russian Foreign Ministry on July 17, 2023 announced Moscow's withdrawal from the agreement. The Russian ministry also pointed out that the corridors intended for the export of grain from Ukraine were used for terrorist attacks on Russian facilities.
Putin has repeatedly noted that Russia is ready to return to the Black Sea initiative. But for this there must be a real fulfillment of the conditions of the Russian side.
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Putin estimated the grain harvest in Russia this year
A good grain harvest is expected in Russia this year - 130 million tons, President Vladimir Putin said on September 4 following a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan .
“We will have a good harvest this year, somewhere last year it was 158 million tons, this year it will be somewhere around 130,” Putin said.
He also noted that Russia's export potential will remain at the level of 60 million tons of grain. The head of state added that Turkey is a big partner of Russia with a large-scale flour-grinding industry.
“We will fully meet the needs of the Republic of Turkey,” Putin said.
He added that Moscow is ready, meeting the needs of Ankara, to return to the grain deal, subject to Russia's conditions. Regardless of this, Russia is ready to supply grain to the poorest countries along with Turkey and Qatar.
“From 25,000 to 50,000 tons will be delivered to six African countries free of charge. Right in the coming days,” Putin said.
As IA Regnum reported , on September 4, at a meeting in Sochi, Putin and Erdogan discussed the possibility of resuming the grain deal. Following the talks, the Russian President said that Moscow was ready to agree to revive the agreement, but on the condition that the West fulfill all promises.
The President of Russia recalled that Moscow three times went towards the West and extended the Black Sea initiative. Since Russia's conditions were never met, the deal ended on July 18. In addition, the West deceived Russia, declaring that the grain will go to the poorest countries.
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Shoigu called one of the reasons for Russia's withdrawal from the grain deal
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu called the drones of the Ukrainian army one of the reasons for Moscow's withdrawal from the grain deal. He announced this on September 4th.
“Oddly enough, this has a direct correlation with the grain deal. Because this is one of those violations, as a result of which we withdrew from this deal, ” said the head of the Ministry of Defense, speaking of the destruction of the base for the production of Ukrainian naval drones.
As Shoigu explained, it followed from the initial agreements that Ukrainian ports would not be used against Russia, including for the creation of drones.
At the same time, Shoigu announced the destruction of seven Ukrainian maritime drones in the Black Sea in recent days. According to him, such boats are produced in the Black Sea, Yuzhny and Odessa ports.
“As for unmanned boats, you have probably seen everything, covered it all more than once. Over the past week, seven of these have been destroyed, not even in a week, but in five days, ” he said.
The minister also noted that the issue of strengthening Turkey's role in the Black Sea was not discussed at the talks in Sochi. According to Shoigu, this was not and is not discussed, since there are established rules for navigation and the passage of ships through the straits.
As IA Regnum reported , the Ministry of Defense announced Ukraine's violation of guarantees not to use the humanitarian corridor for military purposes and the attack on the bases of the Black Sea Fleet and the civilian infrastructure of Crimea on March 23 and April 24.
The grain deal between Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the UN was valid from July 22, 2022 to July 17, 2023. The Russian Foreign Ministry has repeatedly stated that there are no grounds for a further extension of the deal, since it has turned into a purely commercial export of food from Ukraine to “well-fed” countries.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin on July 13 allowed the suspension of Russia's participation in the grain deal, after the deadline, on July 17, the Kremlin announced the suspension of Russia's participation in the grain deal. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that the Black Sea agreements had actually ceased to be valid.
Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Vershinin announced the absence of negotiations on the resumption of the grain deal, the head of the department, Sergei Lavrov , said on June 14 that the future of the agreement depends on the fulfillment of the conditions of the Russian side.