Russia and Germany’s foreign ministers met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Saturday, officials from both sides said, in the first such talks since before Russia’s full-scale military operation of Ukraine in 2022.
Russia’s Sergei Lavrov and Germany’s Johann Wadephul discussed bilateral relations and the war in Ukraine, the Russian foreign ministry said.
Wadephul urged Russia to do “everything possible to reach an agreement on grain exports via the Black Sea”, a German delegation source said.
Russian and Ukrainian exports via the Black Sea have been sharply curtailed in recent months as Kyiv and Moscow targeted each other’s port infrastructure and vessels. Ukraine and its allies are now pushing to secure a limited ceasefire in the Black Sea and on strikes on energy infrastructure.
Russia has not given any clear indication publicly that it supports these initiatives.
Wadephul told Lavrov, “Time is of the essence: given the food shortages in many countries — particularly in the Global South — all parties must be willing to engage constructively,” the German delegation source said.
The German minister also told Lavrov that “a pragmatic solution could pave the way for further concrete steps”, the source said.
