On Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the Istanbul talks on the Ukraine grain issue created substantive results; nonetheless, additional technical work is needed to materialize the progress.

"Today is an important and substantive step, a step on the way to a comprehensive agreement," adding that "In a world darkened by global crisis today, at last, we have a ray of hope. A ray of hope to ease human suffering and alleviate hunger around the world. A ray of hope to support developing countries and the most vulnerable people, a ray of hope to bring a measure of much-needed stability to the global food system," Guterres said.

The UN has been continuously working on the deal, but the secretary general went on to say that additional technical work will be required to make the progress real.

Furthermore, Guterres thanked Turkey for "their outstanding efforts to convene these talks and their critical role" and Russian and Ukrainian officials for their "constructive engagement."

On July 3rd, and upon Ukraine's request, Turkey detained a Russian ship suspected of carrying Ukrainian grain. The detained ship has been returned to Russian territorial waters on July 7, a Turkish source told AFP. Turkey’s decision to return the ship to Moscow has drawn angry condemnations from Kiev.

Previously, on June 3rd, Politico reported, citing US officials, that the US will not lift sanctions against Russia in order to assist with grain exports from Ukraine. This is opposed to the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova's statement to Sputnik, on May 19, that remarks alleging that Russia is blocking exports of Ukrainian grain in the Black Sea ports are “speculations.

Read more: Turkey detains Russian ship suspected of carrying Ukrainian grain