Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin emphasized the purely commercial nature of the Black Sea initiative during a telephone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Burak Akcapar. The Russian foreign ministry issued a statement on Thursday, highlighting that the initiative falls short of its declared humanitarian goals of aiding needy countries.
"The conversation revolved around ensuring the implementation of the Istanbul 'package' agreements, which were signed on July 22, 2022. The Russian side reiterated its stance on the commercial nature of the Black Sea initiative, emphasizing that it primarily focuses on the export of Ukrainian food rather than addressing the stated humanitarian objectives of assisting needy countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, as well as the lack of progress on the Russia-UN memorandum regarding the normalization of domestic agricultural exports," the statement read.
In addition to the Black Sea initiative, the discussion encompassed "the task of providing comprehensive international humanitarian assistance to Syria, particularly in light of the expiration of UN Security Council Resolution 2672 on July 10."
The meeting, held on July 5, was initiated by the Turkish side, according to the Russian foreign ministry.
The package of documents signed in Istanbul on July 22, 2022, pertained to the delivery of food and fertilizers from Ukrainian ports to international markets. Initially intended for a duration of 120 days, the agreements were subsequently extended for an additional 120 days in November. On May 18, Russia announced a further extension of the deal by 60 days, until July 17, with the intention of assessing the implementation of the memorandum signed with the UN during this period.
The Russian MFA has previously stressed that only the Black Sea initiative has seen any progress among the various agreements, while no action has been taken regarding the UN-Russia memorandum. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed his doubts about extending the agreements, stating that he currently saw no arguments in favor of doing so.
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Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS