Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a meeting today, Monday, with the Cabinet to discuss the anticipated visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Ankara. Erdogan's chief advisor, Akif Cagatay Kilic, stated that "Ankara and Moscow are conducting talks regarding the expected meeting between Putin and Erdogan." Erdogan is set to listen to reports from relevant parties concerning the preparations for this meeting.
Today, Erdogan mentioned that "Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan may visit Russia soon to discuss the grain export agreement via the Black Sea ports." He added, "Our foreign minister may soon visit Russia because discussing this issue face-to-face is very important, and achieving results this way will be more accurate."
The Turkish presidency's source told Sputnik that "Ankara expects the meeting to take place in Turkey," noting that "Erdogan invited Putin during their last phone conversation to visit Turkey, but discussions are ongoing with relevant administrations on both the Russian and Turkish sides."
Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Putin and Erdogan agreed to determine the place and time of the meeting as soon as possible. Peskov indicated that the agenda for the talks between the leaders includes bilateral relations, the Ukrainian crisis, and the grain deal.
