According to both sides, it should also be regarding the release of Ukrainian grain deliveries. The Turkish government spoke in advance of “significant progress” in talks with representatives from Kiev, Moscow and the United Nations. But there is a problem with the issue of trust.
Russia: Sea mines in Black Sea coast must be defused
Russia is blockading Ukrainian ports as part of its war of aggression. Ukraine is one of the largest wheat exporters. Experts and politicians are warning of a global food crisis and hunger in many parts of the world. Since the beginning of the war on February 24, world market prices for wheat, for example, have risen sharply, and food is also becoming scarce.
Before Lavrov’s trip, Russia once once more reiterated that sea mines in the waters off the Black Sea coast had to be defused so that shipping traffic would be safe. Turkish experts might help with this. However, Ukraine fears new attacks from the Russian Navy. Russia, on the other hand, wants to prevent ships from secretly bringing war equipment to Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry proposed using the port of the occupied Ukrainian city of Mariuopol on the Sea of Azov for grain export.
