31.10.2026 22:10
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said they are reviewing the proposals offered by Türkiye to re-secure grain shipments through the Black Sea. Drawing attention to Türkiye's past efforts for the grain corridor agreement, Rubio said they want a partial ceasefire that would ensure shipments continue, but he cannot give a timetable for when this will happen. Rubio also stated that talks with both countries are continuing to end the Russia-Ukraine War.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio answered journalists' questions at a press conference held on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Atlanta.
BLACK SEA GRAIN CORRIDOR: TÜRKİYE HAS MADE A CONSISTENT EFFORT
Rubio, stating that interest in meeting the world's grain needs through the Black Sea has been revived, said, “Moreover, this is not even a new issue; for example, Türkiye made a consistent effort in this direction in the past, and at one point an agreement was even reached, but this agreement later collapsed.”
Rubio, noting that he did not want to speculate about the possibility of a new agreement, drew attention to the urgency of the situation, which particularly affects the African continent, and emphasized that “the energy dimension of the issue should not be forgotten either.”
“WE ARE REVIEWING THE PROPOSALS CONVEYED BY TÜRKİYE”
Rubio, saying that talks with different countries are continuing, used the following statements: “We are reviewing the proposals conveyed to us by Türkiye one or two weeks ago, and we will continue to evaluate the efforts in this regard. We desire to achieve this; even if it does not end the entire war, it can at least resolve a particular dimension of the war.”
Rubio, stating that they “of course want a partial ceasefire that would secure grain shipments to take place,” spoke cautiously about when this could happen and said that he “could not give an estimated timeframe.”
TALKS WITH RUSSIA AND UKRAINE ARE ALSO CONTINUING FOR A GENERAL CEASEFIRE
Rubio, noting that a large number of people have lost their lives in the Russia-Ukraine War, reported that they are continuing talks with both countries to end the conflict as soon as possible.
On this matter, he used the following statements: “Leaving everything else aside, given the danger of a possible escalation in the future, it is always important for there to be communication channels at some level between the US and Russia.”
Answering a question about the talks with Ukraine, Rubio assessed: “We meet frequently with the Ukrainians; in fact, we are in contact with them more than—or at least as much as—we are with the Russian side. However, we also need to be able to talk with the Russian side.”
Drawing attention to Russia's nuclear weapons capacity, Rubio said, “There is also the fact that Russia has a large number of nuclear weapons. Perhaps people have forgotten this; however, we would like to remind them that, whatever happens, this situation is important.”