Turkish FM discusses Ukraine war with Estonian, Latvian counterparts

ANKARA

The Turkish foreign minister discussed developments related to the Russia-Ukraine war with his Estonian and Latvian counterparts in separate phone calls on Saturday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.

Mevlut Cavusoglu also discussed the steps to be taken to facilitate grain and fertilizer exports with Estonia's Urmas Reinsalu and Latvia's Edgars Rinkevics.

Türkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed an agreement in Istanbul on July 22 to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which paused after the start of the Moscow-Kyiv war in February.

The parties are currently negotiating a possible extension and expansion beyond its Nov. 19 deadline.

The agreement helped stave off a global food crisis as Russia and Ukraine are two of the world's biggest grain exporters.​​​​​​​

But Moscow has complained about the deal’s implementation, saying it still faces difficulty selling fertilizer and food due to Western sanctions.​​​​​​​