Türkiye continues to engage with stakeholders for grain deal extension

Türkiye is making efforts to extend the Black Sea Grain Initiative which is set to expire on March 18, the country's national defence minister said.

So far, at least 790 grain-loaded ships left Ukrainian ports carrying nearly 23.5 million tons of grains, Türkiye's National Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said on Thursday.

The Istanbul deal ensures a safe passage of grains and other essential items through Ukraine's Black Sea ports preventing a global food crisis.

Last July, Türkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed an agreement in Istanbul to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports which were paused after the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022.

READ MORE: Türkiye calls for developing vulnerable nations at UN summit

"We continue our negotiations with the UN, Ukraine and Russia, which are the parties to the grain initiative. Ukraine expressed a positive opinion on a second extension of the initiative."

Similarly, Russia has a positive attitude towards the extension of the initiative. We also hope and expect that the grain initiative will continue with the contribution of all parties. We continue our efforts in this direction," Akar said.

READ MORE: Erdogan: Türkiye will continue efforts to ease global food crisis