Turkey to try to reach outcome on grain corridor with Russia, Ukraine soon - Daily Sabah
Turkey will try to reach an outcome with Kyiv and Moscow for a potential grain export corridor from Ukrainian ports soon, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Tuesday, according to Daily Sabah.
“We will try to achieve an outcome through intensifying our talks (with Russia and Ukraine) in a period of a week or 10 days,” Erdoğan said during a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi in the capital Ankara.
Saying that Turkey does not face a problem due to the global grain shortage, Erdoğan underlined that this is not the case for other countries while Africa is especially experiencing significant problems.
Tens of millions of people across the world are at risk of hunger as the four-month war has disrupted shipments of grain from Ukraine.
Turkey has played a central role in negotiations with Russia and Ukraine to try to reach an agreement that would allow for an increase in the amount of grain that can get out of Ukraine amid the conflict.
Some grain was transported west by rail out of Ukraine, but experts say restoring Ukraine’s ability to export grain through the Black Sea is necessary to have a significant effect on easing global food shortages.
Draghi thanked Turkey for its mediation role in unblocking grain exports from Ukraine, adding, "We need to free these (exports) as soon as possible to avoid a humanitarian and social catastrophe in the poorest countries of the world."
At the Elmau G-7 meeting, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the outlines of a plan that the U.N. is working on, which foresees a central role for Turkey, he said.
The Italian prime minister also said stabilization in Libya is crucial, noting that Italy and Turkey will work closely together for it.
