The Russian and Turkish presidents are talking Tuesday, July 19 in Tehran about mechanisms to allow grain exports from Ukraine, blocked in this country by the Russian military offensive at the risk of causing a world food crisis.

Negotiations involving Moscow, Kyiv, Ankara and the UN are due to take place in the coming days in Turkey, after talks progressed on July 13.

"Firstly, we are ready to continue the work in this direction, secondly, this theme will be discussed by the presidents" Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, indicated on Monday, according to Russian agencies, the Kremlin's diplomatic adviser, Yuri Ouchakov, on the eve of a meeting between the two leaders in Iran.

The Russian Defense Ministry said on Friday that a "final document" will be ready shortly to allow the export of grain from Ukraine.

The agreement negotiated through the UN aims to bring out through the Black Sea some 20 million tonnes of grain blocked in Ukrainian silos because of the offensive led by Russia in Ukraine.

It must also facilitate Russian exports of cereals and fertilizers, affected by Western sanctions affecting Russian logistics and financial chains.

Russian and Ukrainian agricultural products are essential to prevent food crises from multiplying in the world.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar confirmed on Monday that "an agreement in principle (...) has been reached" with Ukraine and Russia for the establishment of a secure maritime corridor allowing the transport of cereals.

Priority to the Syrian file 

However, this summit will be mainly dominated by Syria where Russia, Turkey and Iran represent major players in the war that has ravaged the country since 2011, Moscow and Tehran supporting the regime of Bashar al-Assad and Ankara supporting rebels .

The three countries launched the so-called Astana process in 2017, officially aimed at bringing peace to Syria.

Since the end of May, Turkey has been threatening to launch a new military operation in northern Syria, where it seeks to create a 30 kilometer "safe zone" on the border.

Tehran and Moscow have already declared their opposition to such an offensive.

At the meeting, "we will be able to establish the important objective of the Astana meeting, which was to reduce tension in the conflict areas in Syria," Iranian Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian said in a video. published on the ministry's website.

"During my recent trip to Ankara and Syria, I carried the president's message that we can manage the security crisis between Syria and Turkey."

The tripartite summit will be an opportunity for Recep Tayyip Erdogan to meet with Vladimir Putin for the first time since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Turkey, a member of NATO, tried to maintain contact with the two countries, offering its mediation on several occasions.

This meeting also comes a few days after US President Joe Biden's tour of the Middle East, where he visited Israel and Saudi Arabia, two countries hostile to Iran.  

With AFP

The summary of the

France 24 week invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you!

Download the France 24 app

google-play-badge_EN