Vladimir Putin’s extraordinary support from leaders of Iran and Turkey
He’s achieved pariah status in the West, but Russian President Vladimir Putin appears keen to show he still has some friends in powerful places.
Russian President Vladimir Putin appears keen to show he still has powerful friends, meeting with the leaders of Iran and Turkey at a three-way summit in Tehran.
In what was his second foreign trip since invading Ukraine, Putin met with Iran President Ebrahim Raisi and Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss crippling blocks on Ukrainian grain exports in the Black Sea – which has triggered fears of a global food shortage – and the ongoing civil war in Syria.
Russia and Turkey have traditionally supported opposing sides of the Syria conflict, with Iran and Russia supporting Syria’s government and Turkey backing rebel forces.
At the meeting, the three leaders adopted a joint declaration, pledging to strengthen co-operation in the interests of the “normalisation” of the situation in Syria.
Putin praised the talks with Iran and Turkey’s leaders, saying they had been “truly useful and rather substantial”.
His trip to Tehran also marked his first face-to-face meeting with the leader of a NATO country – his Turkish counterpart, Mr Erdogan – since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Mr Erdogan has refused to join international sanctions against Russia and has instead attempted to play the role of mediator.
A key talking point was Russia’s Black Sea blockade of millions of tonnes of grain from Ukraine – one of the world’s biggest exporters of wheat and other grain – which has sparked fears of global food shortages.
Russia’s Black Sea fleet is believed to be stopping shipments from getting in and out, and the BBC has reported evidence Russian forces have stolen and exported grain from Ukraine.
Putin later told reporters “progress” had been made in discussions towards exporting grain from Ukraine, but any deal hinged on the West’s willingness to yield some ground.
“We will facilitate the export of Ukrainian grain, but we are proceeding from the fact that all restrictions related to air deliveries for the export of Russian grain will be lifted,” he said.
“As you know, Americans have lifted – essentially lifted – restrictions on the supply of Russian fertilisers to the world markets,” Putin said.
“If they sincerely want to improve the situation on the international food markets, I hope the same will happen with the supply of Russian grain for export.”
Cereal prices in Africa, the world’s poorest continent, have surged because of the slump in exports from Ukraine, sharpening the impact of conflict and climate change and sparking fears of social unrest.
The United Nations has said Africa faces an “unprecedented” crisis caused by the conflict.
Turkey has been using its good relations with both the Kremlin and Kyiv to try to broker an agreement on a safe way to deliver the grain.
On Wednesday, Russian and Ukrainian delegations are due to meet in Istanbul alongside Turkish and UN representatives, with hopes rising for an announced accord.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned this week that the grain impasse was “an issue of life and death for many human beings”.
– with AFP
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