Enlarge image
A farmer works at the harvest in the Dnipropetrovsk region
Photo: Efrem Lukatsky / dpa
In the conflict over the blockade of grain exports from Ukraine, UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and representatives from Russia and Ukraine want to sign an agreement this Friday in Istanbul.
This was announced by the Turkish Presidential Office.
The agreement therefore affects both Ukrainian and Russian exports.
A UN spokesman in New York had previously announced that Guterres wanted to travel to Istanbul on Thursday.
An agreement on an agreement with Moscow and Ukraine to export millions of tons of Ukrainian grain has not yet been fully negotiated, the spokesman said.
According to diplomats, the export of goods blocked in Ukraine via secured corridors in the Black Sea should be made possible by local ceasefires, the AFP news agency reports.
Turkey should therefore inspect the ships to prevent the transport of weapons.
A coordination center with UN specialists could be set up in Istanbul, it said.
USA wants to take over guarantees
The agreement should also make it easier for Russian grain and fertilizer to be exported.
Grain exports from Russia are not subject to direct sanctions, but are made more difficult by sanctions against transport companies, insurance companies and banks.
At a summit meeting in Tehran, Russia's President Vladimir Putin called for relief for Russian exports in return for the export of Ukrainian grain.
According to information from diplomatic circles, Washington is ready to provide guarantees so that transport companies can provide Russia with large cargo ships.
Russia had previously complained that it could not use sufficiently large ships because of the sanctions.
The parties had already reached an agreement in principle last week.
For example, joint controls should take place.
A solution had also been found for the safety of the ships with which the grain is to be transported.
In addition, a coordination center with representatives from all sides is to be set up on the Bosporus in Istanbul.
The strait running through Istanbul, over which Turkey has sovereignty, is the only sea route from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.
For weeks, the international community has been calling on Russia to allow the export of Ukrainian grain.
Ukraine complains that the Russian Navy is blockading its Black Sea ports.
Russia denies blocking wheat exports.
Between 20 and 25 million tons of grain are currently blocked in Ukraine.
Before the Russian invasion, Ukraine was the world's fourth largest exporter of wheat and corn.
The Russian war of aggression and its aftermath have pushed up grain and oil prices.
tfb/dpa/AFP
