On Thursday, Türkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said six-grain ships left Ukrainian ports to transit the maritime corridor opened in the Black Sea last July under the Russia-Ukraine agreement.
According to the Minister, over 9.7 million tons of Ukrainian grain have been shipped via the Black Sea route. In this regard, he said, "We are going to intensify our efforts on the extension of the grain initiative, which will expire on November 19."
Russia announced its return to the Black Sea Grain Initiative after receiving assurances through the UN and Türkey that Kiev will not use the corridor for military purposes.
The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that a written guarantee had been received from Ukraine of not using the sea route and Ukrainian ports designated for grain export to carry out military operations against Russia.
On October 29, Moscow suspended the grain agreement negotiated by the United Nations (UN) and Türkiye due to Kiev's attack on Russian military and civilian vessels in Sevastopol (Crimea).
The agreement, aimed at ensuring grain and fertilizer supplies to world markets amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, was signed in Istanbul on July 22.