ANKARA, November 4. /TASS/. Turkey and Russia have agreed to supply food countries in need free of charge, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.
"During our talks with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, we agreed to ship grain free of charge to countries in need. We will ensure that bulk grain ships reach countries that are currently suffering from a severe food crisis and famine," the Turkish leader stressed.
According to Erdogan, he also discussed the initiative with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. In addition, the president announced his intention to raise the issue of food supply to African countries at the upcoming G20 summit in Bali.
Erdogan stressed that the attempts of Western countries to teach the lessons of humanity, while ignoring the suffering of people in Africa, is a shame. At the same time, he noted that Turkey is not surprised by Europe’s mentality and behavior, but does not accept it.
On November 2, President Putin announced that even if it withdraws from the grain deal, Russia is ready to supply grain to the poorest countries. He made a special emphasis on the fact that the grain deal was carried out under the pretext of ensuring the interests of the food security of the poorest countries, but only 4% of the grain was delivered to them from the territory of Ukraine. He also assured that Russia would not interfere with the supply of grain from Ukraine to Turkey in the future.