ISTANBUL, Turkey —
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will visit Turkey next week for talks on unblocking grain exports
from Ukraine, which have been stalled by Moscow’s offensive, Turkey’s top
diplomat said on Tuesday.
اضافة اعلان
In a televised interview, Foreign Minister Mevlut
Cavusoglu said Lavrov would arrive in Turkey on June 8 “for talks on the issue
of opening a security corridor that also includes (shipping) of wheat in the
Black Sea.”
Cavusoglu said: “This is the most important
question. We are focussing on this. We are planning to establish a center in
Istanbul to observe the corridor.”
Lavrov will be accompanied by a military delegation,
he added.
The announcement comes a day after
Russian President Vladimir Putin told Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Moscow was
ready to work with Ankara to free up maritime shipping blocked over the
conflict.
The Russian leader said the readiness of the Russian
side “to contribute to the unimpeded maritime transit of goods in coordination
with Turkish partners. This also applies to grain exports from Ukrainian
ports,” the Kremlin quoted Putin as saying in a readout of a call with
Erdogan.
Russia’s offensive in Ukraine and Western sanctions
have disrupted supplies of wheat and other commodities from the two countries,
fuelling concerns about the risk of shortages and hunger around the world.
Russia and Ukraine produce 30 percent of the global
wheat supply.
Dozens of container ships are blocked in Ukrainian
ports that are surrounded by
Russian forces, choking off exports of wheat,
sunflower oil and other foodstuffs, as well as fertilizer for crops.
Black Sea navigation has also been hampered by mines
placed by both Russian and Ukrainian forces.
Read more Region and World
Jordan News
.jpg)
.jpg)
