Russian staff have left the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) in Istanbul as a consequence of Russia's withdrawal from the grain deal, according to reports from the TRT TV channel with reference to sources in the Turkish defense ministry on Thursday.
Despite this development, the Turkish ministry remains hopeful that the grain deal will be restored and continues to engage with the participants through specialized agencies. They stressed that the grain corridor remains vital, and "Turkey does not see any viable alternative to it."
Turkey has taken the responsibility to ensure the JCC's operational functioning by deploying "sufficient workforce" for the continuation of initiatives aimed at extending the deal.
The Turkish defense Ministry reiterates its support for the grain corridor initiative, which has successfully facilitated the export of over 33 million tons of agricultural products from Ukrainian ports to 45 countries. Throughout the implementation, more than 1,000 ships were engaged in this extensive export operation.
The closure of the Black Sea humanitarian corridor comes as a consequence of the termination of the grain deal, with the Russian defense ministry declaring that starting from 00:00 Moscow time on July 20, all vessels bound for Ukrainian ports will be considered as potential carriers of military cargo.
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Based on materials from TASS