Putin Erdogan

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed grain supplies and a regional gas project on Sunday, the two countries said.

Prior to this confirmation, Russian news agencies Ria and Ifax, citing the Kremlin, reported that the two leaders had spoken by phone about energy projects.

Turkey is a member of NATO but has not taken part in Western sanctions against Moscow since the invasion of Russia by Ukraine, considered by the Kremlin as a “special operation”.

Ankara has, however, intervened as a mediator with the United Nations for an agreement that guarantees grain exports from Ukraine and Russia, two of the world’s largest producers of this foodstuff. “President Erdogan has expressed his sincere wish that the Russian-Ukrainian war will end as soon as possible,” the Turkish presidency said.

During his meeting with Vladimir Putin, Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said that Ankara and Moscow could start working on the export of other food products and raw materials via the Black Sea grain corridor, added the Turkish presidency. The Kremlin said the two leaders also discussed an initiative to create a base in Turkey for Russian natural gas exports.

Mr. Erdogan supports the initiative proposed by Mr. Putin in October to create a large natural gas center in Turkey, the Kremlin revealed in a statement.

While Russia and Ukraine have agreed to extend the agreement on the export of grain and fertilizers from the Black Sea ports for 120 days, MM. Putin and Erdogan stressed the importance of implementing this comprehensive agreement in a comprehensive and detailed manner, according to the statement.

The two leaders also hailed the development of trade and economic ties between Russia and Turkey, and praised the steady implementation of joint projects, especially in the field of nuclear energy, according to the statement.