A coordination centre for exporting Ukrainian grain is expected to be set up in Turkiye’s largest city Istanbul, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said shortly after Türkiye hosted a four-way meeting on Wednesday.

“An agreement has been reached on the establishment of a coordination centre with representatives of all sides, joint controls for checking grains at harbours, and ensuring the safety of the vessels in the transit routes, following the meeting which took place in a positive and constructive atmosphere,” Akar said.

He noted that Türkiye, Russia and Ukraine would meet again next week and sign the agreement.

Praising the meeting as an important step toward solving the global food crisis, Türkiye’s Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said the four sides have discussed all details related to the grain corridor.

“We see that all sides are eager to solve this problem,” he said, adding that Türkiye will continue to undertake the responsibility to contribute to regional and global peace and prevent humanitarian catastrophes.

Akar said the participants found common ground on technical issues, such as navigational safety on transfer routes, as well as joint controls at entry and exit of ports.

Representatives of Ukraine and Russia are set to gather in Türkiye next week to review the details of the agreement and also sign relevant documents, making the deal official, he added.

Meanwhile the just-brokered agreement to facilitate Ukrainian grain exports is a “ray of hope” for those suffering from hunger worldwide, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday.

“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 at the UN’s New York headquarters.