The meeting of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin is underway in Sochi with a focus on reinstating the agreement that allowed the export of Ukraine’s grain through the Black Sea.

Turkey’s Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek and Central Bank Chief Hafiz Gaye Erkan accompany President Tayyip Erdogan as he arrives in Sochi to meet with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and to discuss, among other things, the issue of grain exports through the Black Sea, according to an unnamed Turkish source.

The two top executives of Turkey’s economic group will participate in the meetings that will include Erdogan’s visit to Sochi.

The movement of Mehmet Simsek and Hafiz Gaye Erkan, appointed in June to lead Turkey’s economic policy shift toward orthodoxy, was not previously announced. It is not known which Russian officials they will meet and what they will discuss.

Turkey’s central bank declined to comment on Hafiz Gaye Erkan’s trip.

The first meeting between Mr Erdogan and Mr Putin since October 2022 it will come as the Russian military tries to contain a Ukrainian counteroffensive that, according to Kiev, now looks promising after three months of hostilities on the southern front.

The Turkish head of state has hopes that talks on Ukrainian grain exports will become a springboard for the launch of broader peace negotiations between Kiev and Moscow.

Mr. Erdogan is among the few leaders of NATO member states who remain in touch with Mr. Putin.

The relationship between the two countriesnarrow but sometimes stormy, strengthenedthough there has been turmoil since Russia launched what the Kremlin dubbed a “special military operation” in Ukraine in February 2022.

Mr Putin’s decision to reduce and postpone Turkish payments for Russian gas helped to soften the consequences of the economic crisis which threatened to cost Mr Erdogan power before he was finally re-elected to the Turkish presidency in May.

From her side, Turkey has refused to impose sanctions on Russia like its Western partners and has become a destination of immense importance for Russians who want access to various products and services.

However Mr Erdogan has deeply irritated his Russian counterpart by supplying Ukraine with weapons and supporting Kiev’s ambition to join NATO.

There was fury in the Kremlin when he was repatriated in July along with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky commanders of the Azov battalion, in violation of an agreement between Moscow and Kiev, which stipulated that they would remain in Turkey until the end of the armed conflict.

Nevertheless Russia, like Ukraine, seeks Mr Erdogan’s support in their Black Sea conflictespecially with regard to exports.