Ukraine and Russia on Friday signed separate "mirror" deals on grain export with Türkiye and the UN to free up grain exports from Ukraine's besieged Black Sea ports. 

Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres attended the signing ceremony. The agreement, in two copies, was signed by Türkiye's Defense Minister Hulusi Akar with Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov, and with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, respectively.

Shoigu said the signed memorandum on UN assistance in the supply of Russian food and fertilizers to world markets and the algorithm for the export of Ukrainian grain are interconnected, RIA reported after the ceremony.

Shoigu added that the safety of ships in the territorial waters of Ukraine within the framework of the "product deal" should be provided by Kiev.