KYIV -- Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said during a visit to Kyiv that there is “no alternative” to the original Ukraine-Russia grain deal that was brokered by his country and the United Nations but which collapsed after Moscow pulled out of the agreement last month.
“We know alternative routes are being sought [for grain shipments], but we see no alternative to the original initiative because they carry risks," Fidan told reporters on August 25 after meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal in the Ukrainian capital.
"Revitalizing this initiative is a priority for Turkey," Fidan added.
The comments follow remarks by some Western allies suggesting the possibility of establishing alternative ways of ensuring the export of Ukrainian grain, including the “possibilities of railway transportation and the capacities of the ports of individual NATO member states."
The deal initially allowed Ukraine to ship grain through blockaded ports on the Black Sea. However, Russia withdrew from the agreement last month and began attacking Ukrainian port and grain facilities.
Many world leaders expressed concerns that interruption of the grain deal would raise prices and cause further food insecurity, especially in poorer nations, including some in Africa and others such as Haiti.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on August 3 took aim at Russia in a speech to the UN Security Council, accusing Moscow of "blackmail" over its withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
Shmyhal earlier said he and Fidan had discussed the crucial grain deal, along with overall trade and economic issues between the two nations, during the Kyiv talks.
Shmyhal wrote on Telegram that the two sides also discussed plans for future restoration of Ukrainian infrastructure after the ongoing Russian invasion is over, as well as "other joint projects."
"We are looking forward to a brisk finalization of all the procedures regarding the acquisition of the [previously agreed] free-trade agreement. We discussed in detail the issue of global food security. In that regard, we have a fruitful dialogue with Turkey, and we count on further cooperation," Shmyhal wrote.
Ukraine and Turkey agreed to the free-trade deal when Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Kyiv in early February 2022, three weeks before Russia launched its full-scale aggression against Ukraine.
Shmyhal also expressed thanks to Ankara for its support of Zelenskiy's efforts to end Russia's unprovoked war while reasserting Kyiv’s position that Ukrainian-Russian peace talks are only possible after the full withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory.
Ankara has attempted to maintain relations with both Kyiv and Moscow following Russia's invasion, both on political and economic issues.
Fidan reiterated Ankara's support for Ukraine's independence and territorial integrity and stressed the importance of the resumption of Ukrainian grain exports and the restoration of Ukraine's infrastructure.
Zelenskiy expressed gratitude to Turkey for its role last month in returning to Ukraine five commanders of the Azov Battalion taken prisoner by Russia during the brutal struggle for the city of Mariupol early in the war that culminated with a long, bloody holdout at the Azovstal steel plant.
The commanders had been handed over to Turkey by Russia, and their released angered the Kremlin, which said the return violated an agreement “on the exchange of prisoners.”
Kyiv and Moscow had previously agreed that the five commanders, who were taken prisoner when Russia captured the port city of Mariupol, would remain in Turkey until the end of the war.