Putin hosts Erdogan for talks on trade, Ukraine, Syria

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV and ZEYNEP BILGINSOY
Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has visited Russia for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. They discussed a grain deal brokered by Turkey and the U.N., prospects for talks on ending hostilities in Ukraine, the situation in Syria and growing economic ties between Moscow and Ankara. Last month, Turkey and the U.N. helped broker agreements between Russia and Ukraine for Ukraine to export 22 million tons of grain and other agricultural products that have been stuck in its Black Sea ports since Moscow sent troops into the country. In a statement issued after Friday’s talks that lasted four hours, Putin and Erdogan emphasized “the necessity of a complete fulfillment of the package deal reached in Istanbul.”