Putin has agreed to extend "grain deal" - Erdogan

"As you know, we are preparing to receive Putin in Turkey in August. We are discussing the extension of this Black Sea grain corridor," he said.

Erdogan also mentioned that UN Secretary-General António Guterres has sent a letter to Putin with a proposal to preserve the Black Sea "grain agreement."

"With this letter, we guarantee the continuation of the grain corridor through joint efforts between us and Russia. In this way, we will continue to address the issues of underdeveloped, impoverished African countries as quickly as we have done together with Mr. Putin," added the President of Turkey.

Kremlin's reaction

Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the Russian dictator, responded to Erdogan's statement.

According to him, there have been no statements from the Russian side regarding extending the "grain agreement."

"Grain deal"

Since the start of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, African countries have been left without Ukrainian grain and other agricultural exports due to Russia's blockade of ports in the Black Sea.

Later, Turkey and the UN separately signed agreements with Russia and Ukraine to create a humanitarian corridor in the Black Sea.

However, in recent months, representatives of the Kremlin have actively stated their refusal to continue the "grain agreement" after July 17. Peskov said, "There is no chance for the 'grain agreement."

Representatives of the aggressor country justify this by claiming that no one is fulfilling the terms of the agreement regarding the export of Russian ammonia through Ukraine.

Furthermore, the Financial Times reported that the EU may lift sanctions on a Russian bank to continue the agreement.