The G-20 leaders, on the first day of talks in New Delhi on Saturday, praised the efforts of Türkiye and the United Nations in bringing Ukrainian and Russian grain to the world market to hinder a global food crisis.
In the G-20 declaration, the leaders called for the full, timely and effective implementation of the grain deal to ensure prompt and unhindered delivery of grain, food products and fertilizers from Russia and Ukraine.”
“This is necessary to meet the demand in developing and least developed countries, particularly those in Africa,” it said.
The consensus was a breakthrough as the Group of 20 is divided over the war in Ukraine, with the West said to be pushing for condemnation in the declaration.
Türkiye’s efforts were also discussed during the several meetings President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held with world leaders on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in the Indian capital, New Delhi.
Türkiye was a key player in the now-on-hold deal that allowed for the safe passage of Ukrainian grain shipments via the Black Sea despite the blockade of its ports after Moscow launched its invasion in late February 2022.
The accord, brokered by Ankara and the United Nations in July 2022, ended last month after Moscow refused to renew it. Ankara has ramped up efforts to try to revive the initiative.
Türkiye has positioned itself as an intermediary in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and Erdoğan was a key player in brokering the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
Moscow withdrew from the accord on July 17, accusing the West of hampering its own grain and fertilizer exports, and has since attacked Ukrainian agricultural and port infrastructure. It has said that it was ready to return to the deal once an accompanying agreement concerning Russia was implemented.
