2 yıl önce

Latvia: Türkiye's role in Ukraine grain deal a remarkable achievement

Latvia's Foreign Minister says his country appreciates Türkiye's efforts towards securing the grain deal, under which a total of 25 ships have left Ukraine ports since August 1.

AA

"There is huge interest in cooperation in the field of defence industries," Rinkevics said, besides the areas of IT, tourism and traditional cooperation.

Latvia has welcomed Türkiye's mediation role between Moscow and Kiev to secure grain exports from Ukrainian ports, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said after a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu.

"We appreciate the effort and the role that Türkiye has played to advance and to provide good offices to secure the grain deal," Rinkevics said after meeting Cavusoglu in Türkiye's capital Ankara on Tuesday.

"I think that what the Turkish government has done so far, working with Ukraine and with Russia and also partnering with the UN to secure grain exports to address the food security issue, is a remarkable achievement," he said.

He added that it is important the deal is being implemented.

On July 22, Türkiye, the UN, Russia and Ukraine signed a deal in Istanbul to reopen three Ukrainian Black Sea ports for exporting Ukrainian grain stuck due to the Russia-Ukraine war, which is now in its sixth month.

To oversee the process, the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) in Istanbul was officially launched on July 27, comprising representatives from the three countries and the UN to enable the safe transportation of commercial foodstuffs and fertilizers by merchant ships.

Since the first departure on August 1, a total of 25 ships carrying grain and wheat have left Ukrainian ports under the deal.

Latvian FM Rinkevics in Ankara:

- We’re extremely interested in more defence industry cooperation
- Thanks Türkiye for huge assistance during pandemic and very good cooperation on Afghanistan
- We don’t accept Russian occupation of Crimea
— TRT World Now (@TRTWorldNow) August 16, 2022

Ankara-Riga relations

Rinkevics said there is always room for improvement when it comes to trade relations between Türkiye and Latvia.

"There is huge interest in cooperation in the field of defence industries," he said, besides the areas of IT, tourism and traditional cooperation.

The minister said that Latvia is also interested in Türkiye-made Bayraktar TB2 drones.

"I know that there are Latvians who are collecting money also to buy Bayraktar drones and deliver them to Ukraine," he said, adding that the drones have been seen as a "very efficient means" of defence for the Ukrainian armed forces against the Russians.

Rinkevics said that Türkiye and Latvia can also cooperate in cyber defence and security against all kinds of attacks.

SOURCE: AA