 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Turkish leader Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul on July 7 after visits to Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, part of a tour of some NATO capitals aimed at encouraging them to take concrete steps at a summit next week towards granting key of membership of the alliance. A key element of Zelensky's talks in Istanbul will be the fate of a deal, brokered last year by Turkey and the United Nations, to allow for the safe export of grain from Ukrainian ports via the Black Sea despite the war raging across Ukraine. The Kremlin said it would be watching the talks closely, saying Putin has highly appreciated the mediation of Erdogan in attempting to resolve the conflict in Ukraine.