The Kremlin said the leaders held a detailed discussion about the Russian initiative and Erdogan expressed full support, reiterating Turkey’s readiness to provide a venue and assist in organizing the negotiations.
Erdogan told Macron that international cooperation is critical for initiating peace negotiations and the "sensitive implementation" of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction processes, the Turkish Presidency reported.
The assault began around 2 a.m. on May 11, with Russian forces deploying 108 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy UAVs from multiple directions, Ukraine’s Air Force said.
"Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending 'bloodbath' hopefully comes to an end... I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens."
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce called for "concrete proposals from both sides" in order for Washington to "move forward" in peace negotiations.
"If they speak to each other in Russian, he doesn't know what they are saying," one Western official told NBC News. Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, called Witkoff's approach "a very bad idea."
Piles of grain in a vessel coming from the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk in the Marmara Sea during an inspection in Istanbul, Turkey on Aug. 18, 2022. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
Russia's drone attack on Odesa Oblast overnight on Aug. 16 marked the seventh time Russia has targeted Ukrainian ports since Moscow pulled out of the Black Sea Grain initiative, President Volodymyr Zelensky said during his evening address.
"Last night, Russian terrorists again targeted... Our infrastructure, which is involved in ensuring not ours, but the common - global - food security," Zelensky said. "In just one month since Russia's attempt to undermine the Black Sea Grain Initiative, this was the seventh massive Russian attack today. The port of Reni, the port of Izmail, Pivdennyi port, the port of Odesa, the port of Chornomorsk, Mykolaiv - every Russian attack on them is a blow to global food prices, a blow to social and political stability in Africa and Asia."
Russian forces launched Shahed kamikaze drones to target grain infrastructure of the Danube ports, damaging warehouses, granaries, and other grain infrastructure on Aug. 16. Resulting fires were quickly extinguished and no causalities were reported, Governor Oleh Kiper said.
The collaborative effort known as the Black Sea Grain Initiative has facilitated an agreement between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by the United Nations and Turkey. Since August 2022, it has enabled the export of at least 32.9 million metric tonnes of food from Ukraine.
Over half of that grain was delivered to developing countries, including those getting relief from the World Food Programme.
Russia pulled out of the year-old deal on July 17.
Daria Shulzhenko
