Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that a allowing Ukraine to export grain safely through the Black Sea amid won鈥檛 be restored until the West meets Moscow's demands on its own agricultural exports.
Ukraine and its Western allies have dismissed the Kremlin鈥檚 demands as a ploy to advance its own interests.
Still, Putin's remarks dashed hopes that his talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan could revive an agreement seen as vital for global food supplies, especially in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
Russia the deal in July, complaining that a parallel agreement promising to remove obstacles to Russian exports of food and fertilizer hadn鈥檛 been honored. It said restrictions on shipping and insurance hampered its agricultural trade, though it has shipped record amounts of wheat since last year.
Putin reiterated those complaints Monday, while also telling reporters that if those commitments were honored, Russia could return to the deal 鈥渨ithin days.鈥�
Erdogan also expressed hope that a breakthrough could come soon. He said Turkey and the U.N. 鈥� which both brokered the original deal 鈥� have put together a new package of proposals to unblock the issue.
鈥淲e believe that we will reach a solution that will meet the expectations in a short time,鈥� Erdogan said at the news conference held with Putin in the Russian resort of Sochi.
Earlier, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock lashed out, saying Putin's 鈥済ame with the grain agreement is cynical.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 only because of Putin that the freighters don鈥檛 have free passage again,鈥� she told reporters in Berlin.
. Ukraine and Russia are and other goods that developing nations rely on.
Data from the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul, which organized shipments under the deal, show that , with the top destination being China.
Grain prices shot up after Russia pulled out of the deal but have since fallen back, indicating that there isn't a big crunch in the market for the moment.
But failure to revive the agreement will have 鈥渄rastic impacts鈥� in countries such as Somalia and Egypt that rely heavily on Black Sea grain, according to Galip Dalay, an associate fellow at the Chatham House think tank in London.
Putin is looking for some relief from sanctions and at the same time is engaged in a 鈥渨ar of narratives,鈥� Dalay said, because the Russian leader 鈥渄oesn鈥檛 want to come across as the bad guy in the eyes of the global south as a result of this food insecurity.鈥�
Ukraine and its allies have often noted that Russia's move left many developing nations in the lurch, since so many were recipients of the grain.
Perhaps in an effort to address that accusation, Putin said Monday that Russia was close to finalizing an agreement to provide free grain to six African countries. Last month, he promised shipments to Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, Eritrea and Central African Republic.
The Russian leader added that the country will ship 1 million metric tons (1.1 million tons) of cheap grain to Turkey for processing and delivery to poor countries.
In addition to pulling out of the grain deal, Russia has repeatedly attacked the Odesa region, where Ukraine鈥檚 main Black Sea port is. Hours before the Sochi meeting, the Kremlin鈥檚 forces launched a second barrage in two days on the area. The Ukrainian air force said it intercepted 23 of 32 drones that targeted the Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions. It did not specify damage caused by those that got through.
Russia may be hoping it can use its power over Ukraine鈥檚 Black Sea exports as a bargaining chip to reduce Western economic sanctions.
Some companies have been wary of doing business with Russia because of those sanctions, even though that food and fertilizer are exempt. Still, Moscow remains unsatisfied.
Ukraine鈥檚 Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Monday urged Moscow to return to the deal, insisting 鈥渢here were no legal and political grounds for Russia to withdraw from the agreement.鈥�
Monday's talks took place against a backdrop of Ukraine's against the Kremlin's invasion forces.
In the latest development, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov would be . The job requires 鈥渘ew approaches,鈥� Zelenskyy said, without elaborating. Reznikov on Monday published a photo of his resignation letter.
Putin and Erdogan 鈥� authoritarian leaders who have both been in power for more than two decades 鈥� are said to have a close rapport, fostered in the wake of a failed coup against Erdogan in 2016 when Putin was the first major leader to offer his support.
The Turkish president has maintained those during the 18-month war in Ukraine. Turkey hasn鈥檛 joined Western sanctions against Russia following its invasion, emerging as a main trading partner and logistical hub for Russia鈥檚 overseas trade.
At the same time, Turkey, a member of NATO, has also supported Ukraine, sending arms, meeting Zelenskyy and backing Kyiv鈥檚 bid to join the Western alliance.
Russia, meanwhile, has taken steps to strengthen its military ties with . Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who traveled to Pyongyang last month, said Monday that the two countries may hold .
U.S. National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson noted that Shoigu sought to persuade North Korea during his trip to sell artillery ammunition to Russia.
The U.S. has reason to think North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un 鈥渆xpects these discussions to continue鈥� and 鈥渢o include leader-level diplomatic engagement in Russia,鈥� Watson said Monday.
Another U.S. official, who was not authorized to address the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the U.S. expects Kim will travel to Russia within the month. The official said the U.S. isn鈥檛 sure exactly where or when the meeting would take place, but the Pacific port city of Vladivostok would be a likely possibility given its relative proximity to North Korea.
reported last week that it had intelligence indicating that Putin and Kim swapped letters following Shoigu's visit. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the letters were 鈥渕ore at the surface level鈥� but that Russian and North Korean talks on a weapons sale were advancing.
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Associated Press writer Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this story.
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