Kremlin Press Secretary DENIES Reports That Putin Agreed To Extend Black Sea Grain Initiative

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin press secretary, has denied reports claiming that Vladimir Putin had agreed to extend the Black Sea grain initiative.

He reported this to the Interfax news agency this evening, Friday, July 14, after reports had appeared earlier today in the Western media to the contrary. ‘We have not made any statements about this’, Peskov insisted.

The AFP news agency posted on Twitter that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had spoken with Putin and that the Russian leader had agreed with him about extending the deal that expires next Monday 17.

As reported by dailysabah.com, the Turkish leader said: ‘Ankara and Moscow are of the same opinion on the issue of extending the grain deal’.

The politician said he hoped that the agreement can be extended in order to allow poor African countries to have access to food.

‘We are preparing to receive Mr Putin in August and we have common positions on this Black Sea grain initiative. UN Secretary-General António Guterres sent a letter to Putin’, explained Erdogan.

‘I hope that with this letter and with our common efforts with Russia, we will extend the grain corridor agreement’, the Turkish president also said on A Haber.

However, the day before, Vladimir Putin, speaking with reporters, did not give a clear answer about the fate of the agreement. ‘We will think – there are a few more days, we will think about how to proceed,” the Russian leader promised.

According to Vladimir Putin, the deal may be terminated due to the fact that it does not respect the interests of Russia.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has five demands

The Russian Foreign Ministry has already highlighted its requirements in order to agree to an extension of the deal. In what it called the ‘five systemic problems’, Russia demanded the reconnection of the Russian Agricultural Bank to the SWIFT system.

It also called for the resumption of supplies of agricultural machinery, allowing spare parts and service to restart, the abolition of restrictions on insurance and reinsurance, the lifting of the ban on access to ports, plus the restoration of the work of the ‘Togliatti-Odessa’ ammonia pipeline.

The unblocking of foreign assets and accounts of Russian companies associated with the production and transportation of food and fertilisers was also demanded.

Putin claimed Russia’s interests had not been fulfilled

‘Nothing – I want to emphasise this – nothing has been done at all’, Putin told the assembled media. ‘Everything is a one-sided game. Not a single item related to the fact that there are interests of the Russian Federation has been fulfilled’, he claimed.

He added: ‘Despite this, we voluntarily extended this so-called deal many times. Many times. Well, listen, that’s enough, after all’.

Putin voiced one of the possible options: ‘not first the extension, and then the fulfilment of promises, but first the fulfilment of promises, and then our participation’.

‘What do you mean? We can suspend our participation in this deal, and if everyone once again says that all the promises made to us will be fulfilled, let them fulfil this promise – and we will immediately join this deal. Again’, Vladimir Putin explained.