


Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday evening said the two leaders agreed to “in the nearest future determine exactly” where the meeting will take place and when. Erdogan has previously said Putin would come during August.Ī Kremlin statement about the call said “readiness was confirmed to return to the Istanbul agreements as soon as the West actually fulfills all the obligations to Russia recorded in them.” It said preparations were continuing for “a possible meeting” of Putin and Erdogan. The statement said the two leaders had agreed on Putin visiting Turkey but did not provide a date. Referring to the deal as a “bridge of peace,” Erdogan told Putin that Turkey would “continue to carry out intensive efforts and diplomacy for the continuation of the Black Sea initiative.” In a telephone conversation Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Russia’s Vladimir Putin that he would seek to restore the Black Sea initiative to export Ukrainian grain, according to his office. Russia declined to renew the agreement last month, complaining that its own exports were being held up. Russia and Ukraine agreed a year ago on a deal brokered by the United Nations and Turkey that reopened three Ukrainian Black Sea ports blocked by fighting and provided assurances that ships entering the ports would not be attacked. Ukraine also can export by road and rail through Europe, but those routes are more costly than going by the Black Sea and have stirred divisions among nearby countries. Ukraine is a major supplier of wheat, corn, vegetable oil and other agricultural products important to the Middle East, Africa and parts of Asia where people are struggling with high food prices and hunger.
