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Erdogan calls on Putin to extend grain deal — newspaper

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters earlier on Friday that the Russian-related part of the deal was not being implemented, and therefore the deal’s prospects "are not very good"

ANKARA, April 28. /TASS/. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to extend the grain deal, the Hurriyet daily reported on Friday, citing sources in the Turkish presidential office, following the talks between the two presidents on Thursday.

According to the newspaper, the issue will be considered in the coming days, including with the participation of UN representatives.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters earlier on Friday that the Russian-related part of the deal was not being implemented, and therefore the deal’s prospects "are not very good."

On July 22, 2022, a package of agreements on food and fertilizer exports to the global market was inked in Istanbul for a period of 120 days, and then was extended for the same period in November. On March 18, 2023, Russia announced that the deal would be extended for 60 more days, saying this would be enough time to assess the efficacy of the memorandum signed with the UN. The Russian Foreign Ministry pointed out that any additional extensions of the deal would hinge on whether Rosselkhozbank is reconnected to SWIFT; the exports of agricultural equipment, spare parts and maintenance services resume; the insurance and reinsurance restrictions as well as the ban on calls to ports are lifted; the Tolyatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline is restarted; and foreign assets and accounts of Russian companies related to production and transportation of food and fertilizers are unblocked.

Earlier this week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres handed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov a letter addressed to the Russian president, which contained his ideas about the grain deal’s implementation. Ukraine and Turkey have also received similar messages.

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Foreign policy Recep Tayyip Erdogan

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