Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the extension of the grain deal for another two months. The Kremlin has not yet commented on the decision, earlier Bloomberg reported on the agreement without specifying the duration of the transaction.
“Thanks to the efforts of our country, the support of our Russian friends and the contribution of our Ukrainian friends, it was decided to extend the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement for another 2 months.”
He also stated that Turkey will continue to make efforts to continue the agreement in the next period, and will fulfill all conditions. According to Erdogan, the Russian Federation announced that it would not interfere with the exit of Turkish ships in the harbors of Nikolaev and Olbia.
“Hopefully we will see days when the war between Russia and Ukraine ends first with a permanent ceasefire and then with peace,” he wrote.
He expressed gratitude to Russian President Vladimir Putin, thanked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for constructive cooperation and UN Secretary General António Guterres for his efforts.
Earlier, Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on the extension of the grain deal: “I don't think any hypothetical reasoning is appropriate here. So far no decision has been made. Here you just have to wait for it to be announced.” The last time Russia extended a grain deal was in March 2023 for 60 days. It officially ends on May 18, 2023. On May 17, the last vessel with grain left the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk within this period.