Putin will visit a NATO country for the first time since the start of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. USA doesn't mind
Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit Turkey in the near future.
According to a PolitNavigator correspondent , Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced this last weekend.
It is noted that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wants to revive the so-called grain deal, which allowed the export of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea.
“Our president will definitely discuss this issue with Putin. This is an issue that we are currently discussing with Russia. Negotiations are taking place, in particular, between the UN, Russia, Ukraine and Turkey. We can develop a new method of delivering grain to world markets,” Fidan said.
According to him, Ankara wants to formalize “de facto delivery from Ukraine using a new mechanism,” adding that the Russians “have some demands in return.”
Earlier, assistant to the Russian leader Yuri Ushakov spoke about preparations for the visit. Reuters claims that the Russian president will arrive in Turkey on February 12.
“This will be the Russian leader’s first trip to a NATO member country since he ordered the invasion of Ukraine two years ago,” notes the Indian English-language publication Business Standard.
A question about Putin’s upcoming visit was asked by journalists to Deputy Spokesperson of the US State Department Vedant Patel,
“If any country can play a meaningful role in curbing some of Russia's malign activities, we would certainly welcome that,” he responded.
But he refrained from commenting on Turkish foreign policy issues, touching only on “Turkey’s influence on the success of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.”
“We continue to feel the critical importance of getting Ukrainian grain to where it is needed and making credible progress in this area. This, of course, can only be welcomed,” Patel emphasized.