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| Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan during a meeting in Sochi, Russia, September 4. (Source: PPO/Reuters) |
“We are close to finalizing agreements with six African countries where we plan to provide free food and even carry out free delivery and logistics. Deliveries will begin in the coming weeks,” Putin said at a press conference with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Sochi.
The Russian leader also stressed that the country is ready to restore the Black Sea Grain Agreement “as soon as” restrictions on its exports are lifted.
"We are ready to consider the possibility of restoring the grain deal... and we will do so as soon as all agreements on lifting restrictions on Russian agricultural exports are fully implemented," Putin said.
The Black Sea grain deal, brokered by Türkiye and the United Nations, is crucial to securing global food supplies, especially for Africa and the Middle East. Russia and Ukraine are major exporters of barley, wheat, sunflower oil and other commodities needed by developing countries.
However, in July 2023, Russia refused to extend the agreement, saying that other parties had failed to meet their commitments to remove barriers to Russian agricultural and fertilizer exports. Moscow also said that restrictions on transportation and insurance had negatively impacted its agricultural trade.
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