Kremlin Confirms Grain Deal Extension, Cites Some Results, Hopes

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The grain deal will be prolonged for two months, and there is a relative result in the negotiations, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative for another two months.

"We can confirm that a decision was made by the Russian side to continue this Black Sea deal ... for a period of two months. There is a relative result in the negotiations with the participation of representatives from Turkiye, Ukraine and the UN," Peskov told reporters.

Kremlin Spokesman added that Moscow is working on options equivalent to unblocking the Russian Agricultural Bank from the SWIFT system.

"As for the guarantees for the Russian Agricultural Bank - various options are being worked out, which will be equivalent to unblocking SWIFT, there are certain hopes for negotiations on the basis of the talks that have already taken place. In this regard, it was decided to extend [the deal] for two months," Peskov told reporters.

He added that it was important to understand that the fate of the deal was still in the hands of those with whom the United Nations had to negotiate the Russian part of the agreement.

"A certain part of the road has been traveled, but not to the end. We will try to resolve this issue within the next 60 days," he said.