Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed today, Thursday, during a phone call, to strengthen economic, trade, and agricultural cooperation between the two countries. The presidents participated virtually in an event celebrating the loading of nuclear fuel into the first unit of the Akkuyu power plant. During this event, Putin stated that the two countries are working to study an initiative proposed by Erdogan to send flour produced from Russian grains to countries in need.
Putin described the Akkuyu plant as "the largest nuclear construction project on the planet," noting that it will help Turkey import less natural gas from Russia in the future. He added, "Turkey will have the advantage of being a country with its own nuclear energy, and nuclear energy, as you know, is one of the cheapest forms of energy."
Andrei Lekhtachev, head of the Russian company Rosatom, stated, "We intend to complete the actual launch of the plant by next year... so that we can generate electricity steadily starting from 2025, according to the agreement."
