Press release on Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin’s participation in a high-level four-party meeting (Russia, Türkiye, Ukraine plus the UN) in Istanbul

On May 10-11, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin attended a high-level four-party meeting (Russia, Türkiye, Ukraine plus the UN) in Istanbul as a member of the Russian interdepartmental delegation.

The parties focused on the implementation of the package of agreements signed in Istanbul on July 22, 2022. They laid emphasis on the Black Sea Initiative on the export of Ukrainian grain, which expires on May 18. The parties conducted a detailed exchange of views on the current problems in the work of the Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) and the proposals by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on unblocking the Togliatti–Odessa Ammonia Pipeline.

Russian delegates confirmed that the exports of ammonia were supposed to begin simultaneously with the export of Ukrainian grain under both Istanbul agreements and without any preliminary conditions. Emphasising the interlinked character of the package agreements, the Russian participants noted the absence of progress in implementing the Russia-UN Memorandum on normalising domestic agricultural exports. They pointed to five systemic problems (bank payments, transport logistics and insurance, parts supplies, unblocking “frozen” assets and the ammonia pipeline). These obstacles continue preventing Russian agricultural exports from reaching global markets.

Russian delegates noted that commercial exports of Ukrainian grain (70 percent of which is fodder corn and feeder grain) mostly to the advanced countries are not of primary importance for ensuring global food security and reducing the threat of famine. To reach these goals, it is more important to normalise exports of Russian fertilisers and grain (70 percent of which is wheat), which are being complicated by Western unilateral blocking sanctions.