Russian President Vladimir Putin stated at the meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Sochi on September 4, that he was open to discussions about Russia's participation in the grain deal

Erdoğan emphasised that the issue of the grain corridor with Ukraine is of utmost importance in these negotiations.

"Everyone is waiting for what will come out of our meeting today. I believe that the message at the press conference after the meeting will be an important step for the whole world, especially for African countries," Reuters quotes Erdoğan as encouraging Russia to return to the grain initiative.

At the same time, Putin told Erdoğan that Russia was open to discussions about the Black Sea grain deal.

"I know that you intend to raise the issue of the grain deal," Putin told Erdoğan. "We are open to negotiations on this question."

Previously, Erdoğan travelled to Russian Sochi for a meeting with Russian President Putin. The Turkish President's administration stated that during the meeting, Erdoğan would discuss "current regional and global issues as well as Turkish-Russian relations."

In late August, the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Türkiye, Dmytro Kuleba and Hakan Fidan, discussed the revival of the grain deal in Kyiv.

Afterward, Fidan, during a visit to Moscow and following a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, called for the revival of the Black Sea grain initiative.