Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a conversation with US President Joseph Biden that he believes in opening a corridor for the export of Ukrainian grain to global markets during the Russian war.
During a meeting with Biden on the sidelines of the NATO summit, Erdogan said he was trying to resolve the process with a "balancing policy."
"We hope that this policy of balance will lead to results and allow grain to be exported through the corridors as soon as possible to countries currently facing shortages," he said.
Turkey has played a central role in negotiations with Russia and Ukraine in an attempt to reach an agreement that would allow an increase in the amount of grain that can be exported from Ukraine amid the conflict.
During the meeting, Biden praised Erdogan for dropping his opposition to Finland and Sweden joining NATO and for the "incredible job he's doing trying to get grain out of Ukraine."
US President Joe Biden thanked Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday for reaching an agreement with Finland and Sweden that paved the way for the two Nordic countries to soon become NATO candidates, Reuters reports.
Biden, in brief remarks ahead of their meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Madrid, also thanked Erdogan for Ankara's efforts to help get grain out of Ukraine. Erdogan said he hoped diplomacy would help resolve issues surrounding Ukraine's grain exports.
Russia's top diplomat told the United Nations secretary general on Wednesday that the country is ready to coordinate efforts to reduce the threat of a global food crisis, the Russian Foreign Ministry said, Reuters reports.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also told Antonio Guterres in a telephone conversation that Moscow is committed to fulfilling its obligations for grain and fertilizer exports.
The head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine said on Wednesday it had carried out a prisoner exchange with Kiev involving 144 fighters from each side, Reuters reports.
"Today we are bringing home 144 fighters of the Donetsk People's Republic and the Russian Federation who were captured by the enemy," Denis Pushilin wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
"We handed over to Kiev the same number of prisoners from the Ukrainian armed forces, most of whom were wounded."
Ukraine praised NATO on Wednesday for its "clear stance" on Russia and its invitation to Finland and Sweden to join the military alliance and called for an "equally strong and active stance toward Ukraine" to protect Euro-Atlantic security.
"Today in Madrid, NATO proved that it can make difficult but essential decisions," Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter.
"We welcome the clear position on Russia, as well as the accession of Finland and Sweden. An equally strong and active position towards Ukraine will help protect Euro-Atlantic security and stability."
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NATO allies are ready to support Ukraine in the long term, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday when he announced additional military support to Kiev, reports Reuters.
"Ukraine can count on us as long as necessary," he told reporters on the second day of the NATO summit in Madrid.
He said the leaders had agreed on a comprehensive package of aid to Ukraine, including secure communications, fuel, medical supplies, mine countermeasures equipment and hundreds of anti-drone systems.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today asked the NATO countries gathered at the summit in Madrid for blue artillery and financial support to face the Russian invasion of his country.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia does not want to stop at the occupation of southern Ukraine or the Donbas region in the east of the country.
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Pope Francis called the bombing of a crowded shopping center in Kremenchuk another in a series of "barbaric attacks" on Ukraine, Reuters reported.
"Every day I carry in my heart the dear and martyred Ukraine, which is still scourged by barbaric attacks like the one that hit the shopping center in Kremenchuk," Pope Francis told the crowd in St. Peter's Square.
"I pray that this crazy war will end soon and I renew the appeal that we tirelessly persevere in praying for peace," he added.
Great Britain has announced sanctions against oligarch Vladimir Potanin, describing him as the second richest man in Russia.
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Russia's Defense Ministry said its forces had carried out strikes on a military training base for "foreign mercenaries" near Mykolaiv in southern Ukraine.
The news was reported by Reuters, but it also emphasized that it was not able to independently verify the report.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky published a video of the attack on the shopping center in Kremenchuk and said that it is "one of the proofs of what Russian troops are doing against the Ukrainian people."
Because of the war in Ukraine, NATO is facing the biggest challenge since the Second World War, said the Secretary General of the alliance, Jens Stoltenberg.
He said, upon arriving at the working part of the summit opened last night in Madrid, that the allies are meeting "in the midst of the most serious security crisis" they have faced so far.
Stoltenberg believes that Russia represents a "direct threat" to the member states of the Alliance, which will strengthen its eastern wing in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, France Press reports.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that he expects the swift ratification of the membership of Sweden and Finland in the military alliance.
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The military-civilian administration imposed by Moscow in the Kherson region of Ukraine has announced that it has begun preparations for a referendum on the region's accession to Russia.
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The number of people killed in this morning's Russian rocket attack on the Nikolayev residential building in the south of Ukraine rose to at least three people, while five people were wounded.
This was said by the mayor of this city, Oleksandr Senkevich, as reported by Reuters.
Senkevich added that eight missiles hit the city and called on residents to evacuate. He said the building appeared to have been hit by a Russian X-55 cruise missile.
Two people were killed and three were wounded in this morning's Russian attack on a residential building in Mykolaiv, a city in southern Ukraine, regional governor Vitaly Kim said, as reported by Reuters.
He did not clarify whether it was a bomb or rocket attack, artillery or mortar shelling, adds Reuters.
The war in Ukraine has entered its 126th day - see what happened in Eastern Europe yesterday HERE.
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