Türkiye has drawn up a plan to restore safe grain shipments through the Black Sea and is discussing the proposal with both Moscow and Kyiv, its foreign minister Hakan Fidan said on Monday.
Fidan said Ankara is seeking an agreement similar to the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which allowed Ukrainian agricultural exports to continue during the first year of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
“We have prepared a plan and we are in contact with both sides regarding this plan,” Fidan told reporters in Istanbul, adding that Türkiye would pursue a new agreement if the “necessary conditions” emerged.
He did not disclose the plan’s provisions or say whether Moscow or Kyiv had accepted any part of the proposal.
Türkiye and the United Nations brokered the original deal in July 2022, five months after Russia sent troops into eastern Ukraine.
The agreement established a protected maritime corridor for Ukrainian grain shipments departing from the ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Pivdennyi.
According to the UN, more than 30 million metric tons of grain and other food products were exported under the initiative, stabilising global food prices and supplying markets in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
Russia, however, withdrew from the agreement in July 2023, saying that commitments intended to facilitate its own agricultural exports – especially fertiliser – had not been fulfilled.
Since the Ukraine war began, Türkiye has maintained relations with both Moscow and Kyiv and has repeatedly offered to mediate between the warring parties with a view to reviving the initiative.
It has also hosted talks between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators and helped arrange prisoner exchanges.
But any revived Black Sea grain initiative would require both sides to accept security guarantees, inspection procedures and arrangements covering shipping insurance.
It would also have to ensure the safety of commercial vessels and port infrastructure amid stepped-up attacks across the Black Sea.
Fidan’s announcement, meanwhile, remains a mere diplomatic proposal, with no timetable for talks or implementation having yet been set between the parties involved.
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