Istanbul to host meeting for export of Ukrainian grain stuck at ports

Military delegations from Türkiye, Russia and Ukraine and a delegation from United Nations will meet in Istanbul on July 13 to discuss the safe export of Ukrainian grain, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar has said.

The talks they carried out within the scope of the diplomatic works and directives of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for the solution of the "food crisis" developed positively, Akar said in a statement on July 12.

Reminding that he also held talks with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov within the scope of the work on grain export, Akar said the contact between Türkiye, Ukraine and Russia, which is described as the "red line" in public, was realized.

A delegation from the Turkish Defense Ministry met their counterparts in Moscow, which followed a visit by the Ukrainian military delegation to Ankara, Akar said.

"After all these meetings tomorrow, the grain waiting at the Ukrainian ports in Istanbul will be safely shipped to international markets by sea. The military delegations of the Russian Federation and Ukraine defense ministries and the United Nations delegation will hold talks," he said.

Ukraine is one of the biggest wheat producers, and the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine has prevented the necessary shipment of grain products from this country.

Türkiye, Russia, Ukraine and the U.N. have been in talks about making a food corridor from Ukraine to the world markets as concerns for a food crisis, especially in the underdeveloped nations, are growing due to the blockage of the export of millions of tons of grains at the Ukrainian ports and silos.

The plan also envisages establishing a liaison office in Istanbul to secure the passage of tankers...