Turkey works on restoration of grain deal: Erdogan's advisor
Ankara is working on restoration of the grain deal, which ended on July 17 this year, Turkish presidential advisor Akif Cagatay Kilic said Saturday, adding that there has been no cooling in Moscow-Ankara relations over the Black Sea grain initiative.
"Our Foreign Ministry works on restoration of the grain deal. There has been no cooling in the Russian-Turkish relations. There are no problems in relations between President Putin and our president [Recep Tayyip Erdogan], who is the only NATO national leader who maintains a direct dialogue both with Russian and Ukrainian leaders. One should see and understand it," he told CNN Turk.
The Turkish official also stated that Ankara strictly complies with the Montreux Convention, which regulates navigation rules in Black Sea straits, believing that a violation of the Convention may create security risks in the Black Sea basin.
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"A violation of the Montreux Convention [after the beginning of the Ukrainian crisis] could pose risks. Should any side have claimed that it does not recognize the Convention, Turkey would have had to interfere. We have taken a serious risk upon us and, thanks to the balanced policy that we carry out, we have achieved the current situation," Kilic said.
Earlier, Turkish authorities stated that they have not authorized a single military ship to enter the Black Sea since the beginning of the special operation in Ukraine.
