The director of the Ukrainian Union of Merchants felt that “Turkey does not have enough strength to guarantee the export of grain through the Black Sea”, pointing out that “we need Turkish and Romanian navies to clear mines from our ports”.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has previously indicated that “Turkey is looking for a form of security guarantees to end the blockade of Ukrainian ports and can become an intermediary in this process.”

On the other hand, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Turkey today to discuss the creation of sea routes to allow the export of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea, where he stated that “Turkey is trying to get Ukrainian grain out of the ports, but Ukrainian forces are preventing its exit,” and added: “We are ready to take the necessary steps to end the crisis of Ukrainian bulk carriers, Ukraine must remove sea mines from ports and sea lanes in front of cargo ships.

French President Emmanuel Macron also confirmed that “in a short period, under the auspices of the UN and with the assistance of Turkey, 20 million tons of Ukrainian grain will be exported”, and added: “Positive results have been obtained from the negotiations between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan” and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on the export of wheat outside Ukraine.

The situation in Ukraine and the large-scale sanctions imposed on Russia by the US and the European Union have led to disruptions in the supply of grain, increasing the risks of a food crisis in many countries of the world.

Turkey is among the countries hit by the Russian military operation in Ukraine, which exports about a quarter of world wheat exports, 80 percent of sunflower oil and more than 15 percent of fertilizers, pushing it to take on a brokering role and keep grain exports out of circle of conflict and return the flow of Ukrainian exports to the world market.