Maria Zakharova, the Russian Foreign Ministry's official spokesperson, said Moscow had not received a "formalized Turkish appeal" regarding a moratorium on military operations in the Black Sea. She also ruled out a return to the grain initiative of 2022–2023.
Zakharova said Russia sees "no prerequisites for an improvement in the situation" and no grounds to agree to a ceasefire. According to her, Turkey floated the proposal through the media rather than through official channels.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on August 8 in an interview with the Anadolu agency that Ankara had proposed that Russia and Ukraine agree on a moratorium on strikes against ships in the Black Sea and establish a corresponding mechanism. Fidan noted that military operations in the Black Sea pose a threat to civilian shipping, and that vessels belonging to Turkish companies have been targeted.
Following Fidan's statements, Russia halted strikes on ships near Ukrainian ports for three days, The Bell reports. On Wednesday night, Ukraine struck Novorossiysk, temporarily knocking out three of the largest export grain terminals.
Zakharova also accused the West of a "dishonest approach" in the grain deal, claiming that Russian agricultural products remained under sanctions and that the humanitarian corridor was used for "terrorist attacks" on facilities in Russia. She ruled out a return to the "one-sided scheme" and said Moscow sees no grounds "for half-measures that merely give the Kyiv regime a temporary respite."