Turkish commodore overseeing Ukrainian grain exports quits duty

Turkish journalist Muyesser Yildiz reported on Monday that a Turkish admiral who has been heading the recently established Joint Coordination Center (JCC) that is tasked with overseeing Ukrainian grain exports resigned from all his duties in the Turkish navy.

The JCC was launched on 27 July in an official ceremony attended by Hulusi Akar, the Turkish Defense Minister and former chief of Turkish General Staff.

Yildiz noted that Commodore Ozcan Altunbulak was neither mentioned in the news reports on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres's visit to the JCC headquarters in Istanbul on Saturday, nor was he seen in any of the photos from the visit.

She also noted that Altunbulak, a graduate of the US Navy War College and a brilliant military officer, had been incarcerated for years on manufactured espionage charges and returned to duty only after the 15 July 2016 military coup attempt.

Altunbulak submitted his resignation and left his office on Friday, Yildiz said.