Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin and Swiss Ambassador to Moscow Krystyna Marty Lang discussed the implementation of the Istanbul agreements, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"A detailed exchange of views took place on various issues of bilateral cooperation at international sites with an emphasis on coordination within UN organizations in Geneva, including the UN Human Rights Council. The implementation of the Istanbul 'package' agreements to ensure the supply of food and fertilizers to world markets was discussed," the ministry said.
Provision of comprehensive international humanitarian assistance to Syria was also considered, taking into account Bern's informal supervision of this dossier in the UN Security Council in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2672, which envisions, in addition to "cross-border" aid supplies, the establishment of broad and sustainable internal access through the lines of contact and implementation of projects for the early restoration of civilian infrastructure.
Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the UN reached an agreement on July 22, 2022 to provide a humanitarian maritime corridor for ships carrying food and fertilizer exports from Ukrainian Black Sea ports. On May 18, 2023, Russia extended the deal, called the Black Sea Grain Initiative, for 60 days, until July 17.
The deal is an integral part of a package agreement. The second part - the Russia-UN memorandum, designed for three years - envisions the unblocking of Russian exports of food and fertilizers, the reconnection of the Russian Agricultural Bank to SWIFT, the resumption of supplies of agricultural machinery, spare parts and services, the restoration of the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline and a number of other measures. Moscow says this part of the package agreement has not been implemented yet.