Putin to examine Black Sea shipping proposals from Turkey's Erdogan

FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin said his Turkish counterpart, Tayyip Erdogan, had proposed reviving contacts on Black Sea shipping but that he had not yet had time to study the documents.

Turkey and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have long been seeking to get merchant shipping sailing more freely though the Black Sea, which in parts has become a naval war zone since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.