The US and Russia have committed to advancing the defunct deal as a step towards settling the Ukraine conflict
Türkiye is ready to help revive the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the Kremlin said on Friday, following a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Originally brokered in July 2022 by the UN and Türkiye, the agreement envisioned the safe passage of Ukrainian agricultural exports to the global markets in exchange for the West lifting restrictions on Russian grain and fertilizer trade. Moscow withdrew from the deal in 2023, citing the West’s failure to meet its obligations under the deal.
According to the Kremlin, Erdogan “voiced support for Russian-American dialogue and reaffirmed Ankara’s willingness to help facilitate progress on the Black Sea agreement.”
On Monday, US and Russian officials agreed to restart the initiative, following 12 hours of talks in Saudi Arabia. Russia requested that its agricultural bank, Rosselkhozbank, and other institutions involved in food and fertilizer sales, be reconnected to the SWIFT international payments system, which had been agreed as part of the original Black Sea Grain Initiative.
Moscow cited the West’s failure to follow through on that commitment, along with Kiev’s alleged misuse of the arrangement for military purposes, as reasons for not renewing the rolling annual agreement in 2023.
US President Donald Trump confirmed on Tuesday that his administration is considering lifting some sanctions on Moscow.
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The Kremlin said Moscow and Washington had also discussed steps to ensure safe navigation in the Black Sea, including pledges to avoid the use of force and prevent commercial vessels from being used for military purposes. Proposed measures also include ship inspections.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Channel 1 on Tuesday that Moscow would need firm guarantees from the US to renew the deal. Russia’s position now “is simple: We cannot take anyone’s word at face value,” Lavrov said.
