ARKHANGELSK (Sputnik) — The Russian and Turkish economy ministries will hold consultations soon on Turkey's import curbs of Russian grain, Deputy Economic Development Minister Alexei Gruzdev told Sputnik on Wednesday.
"We maintain contacts with the Turkish Economy Ministry. We expect consultations to be held soon, where we will talk on how we interact further after all," Gruzdev said.
Gruzdev said on the sidelines of an Arctic forum in northwestern Russia that "the loss of Russia as the main supplier of grains will cause quite significant economic damage to Turkish exporters who process these products and then export."
"From the viewpoint of the possibility of substitution, the Ministry of Agriculture is currently working. We do not consider the issue closed because we do not have notification from the Turkish authorities on how these decisions will be specifically implemented," he said.
