Russia and Ukraine on Friday signed separate deals with Turkey and the United Nations clearing the way for the export of millions of tons of Ukraine’s desperately needed grain, as well as Russian grain and fertilizer, ending a war-torn standoff that had threatened food security around the world. The deal will allow Ukraine, one of the world’s key granaries, to export 22 million tonnes of grain and other agricultural products that have been stuck in Black Sea ports due to Russia’s invasion.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called it “a beacon of hope” for millions of hungry people who have faced huge increases in food costs.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres lead the signing ceremony at Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul, Turkey, of the agreement between Russia and Ukraine on exports of cereals. (AP)
“An agreement to allow grain to leave Black Sea ports is more than just saving lives for people around the world who are struggling to feed their families,” said Red Cross director-general Robert Mardini, who point out that over the past six months food prices. Commodities have increased by 187% in Sudan, 86% in Syria, 60% in Yemen and 54% in Ethiopia.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov signed identical and separate agreements with Guterres and Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar in a ceremony in Istanbul that was witnessed by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“Today there is a lighthouse in the Black Sea,” Guterres said.
“A beacon of hope, a beacon of possibility, a beacon of relief in a world that needs it more than ever.”
“You have overcome obstacles and put aside differences to pave the way for an initiative that will serve the common interests of all,” he told the Russian and Ukrainian envoys.
Guterres described the agreement as an unprecedented agreement between two sides involved in a bloody conflict. Erdogan said he hoped the initiative would be “a new turning point that will revive hopes for peace.”
A farmer harvests crops in a field around a crater left by a Russian rocket ten kilometers from the front line in Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukraine. (AP)
The European Union and the United Kingdom immediately welcomed the agreements.
“This is a critical step forward in efforts to overcome global food insecurity caused by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine,” said EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. “Its success will depend on the swift and good faith implementation of today’s agreement.”
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said her country applauded Turkey and the UN for negotiating the deal.
“We are watching for Russia’s actions to match its words,” Truss said. “To enable a lasting return to global security and economic stability, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin must end the war and withdraw from Ukraine.”
Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest exporters of wheat, corn and sunflower oil, but Russia’s invasion of the country and naval blockade of its ports have halted shipments. Some grain from Ukraine is transported across Europe by rail, road and river, but prices for vital commodities such as wheat and barley have soared during the nearly five-month war.
A family sits on a rock in front of a cargo ship anchored in the Sea of Marmara as they wait for access to cross the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul, Turkey. (AP)
Although international sanctions against Russia did not target food exports, the war has disrupted shipments of Russian products because shipping and insurance companies did not want to deal with Russia.
Guterres said the plan, known as the Black Sea Initiative, paves the way for significant volumes of commercial food exports from three key Ukrainian ports: Odesa, Chernomorsk and Yuzhny.
“It will help stabilize world food prices, which were already at record levels even before the war, a real nightmare for developing countries,” Guterres added.
The agreement provides for the safe passage of ships through heavily mined waters. A coordination center will be established in Istanbul, with UN staff, Turkish, Russian and Ukrainian officials, to monitor the ships and run the process through specific corridors. Ships will undergo inspections to ensure they are not carrying weapons.
A senior United Nations official said the cargo ships would use “safe channels” identified by Ukraine while sailing in and out of ports and would be guided by Ukrainian pilots. The plan does not envisage further demining of Ukraine’s territorial waters, which would have delayed the process.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks from Kyiv. (AP)
No military vessel would be used as an escort, but a minesweeper could be on standby in case safe channels “need occasional checking,” the official said.
Ships entering Ukrainian ports would be screened by inspection teams that would include representatives from all parties involved to ensure there are no weapons on board. The unloading of grain on ships will also be controlled.
A key element of the deal is an agreement by Russia and Ukraine that there will be no attacks on either ship, the official said.
It will take several weeks before the deal is fully operational, noted the official, who said Ukraine needs about 10 days to prepare the ports and also needs time to “identify and be clear about safe corridors.”
An initial movement of ships could be possible sooner “just to show that they can work,” the official said.
The goal is to export about 5 million tons of grains a month to empty Ukraine’s silos in time for the new harvest, according to the UN official. The agreement is for a renewable period of 120 days.
Russian President Vladimir Putin. (AP)
Guterres first raised the critical need to return Ukraine’s agricultural production and Russia’s grain and fertilizer to world markets in late April during meetings with Putin in Moscow and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv.
He proposed a joint pact in early June amid fears that the war was jeopardizing food supplies for many developing countries and could worsen hunger for up to 181 million people.
Peter Meyer, head of grains and oilseeds analysis at S&P Global Platts, said the deal does not “mean the global supply crisis is over”.
Traders anticipated a deal in recent weeks, he said, so its effect may have already been felt in grain prices, meaning they may not fall sharply. And the deal covers the 2021 harvest. There is still considerable uncertainty about Ukrainian production this year and even next year, Meyer said.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres. (AP)
Before the deal, Russian and Ukrainian officials blamed each other for blocked grain shipments. Moscow accused Ukraine of failing to remove sea mines from ports to allow safe transport and insisted on its right to check arriving ships for weapons. Ukraine argued that Russia’s port blockade and missile launch from the Black Sea made any safe shipment impossible.
Ukraine has sought international assurances that the Kremlin will not use the safe corridors to attack the key Black Sea port of Odesa. Ukrainian authorities have also accused Russia of stealing grain from eastern Ukraine and deliberately bombing Ukrainian fields to set them on fire.
Volodymyr Sidenko, an expert at the Razumkov Center think tank in Kyiv, said that it appeared that Ukraine did not raise the issue of grain stolen from the occupied territories in the talks.
“Apparently, it was part of an agreement: Kyiv does not raise the issue of stolen grain and Moscow does not insist on checking Ukrainian ships. Kyiv and Moscow were forced to make an agreement and a compromise with many differences,” he said .
Grain fields burn on the outskirts of Kurakhove, Donetsk province, eastern Ukraine. (AP)
The deal was also important for Russia’s geopolitical relations, the analyst noted.
“Russia decided not to fuel a new crisis in Africa and cause famine and government changes,” Sidenko said. “The African Union asked Putin to quickly ease the crisis with grain supplies and put pressure on the Kremlin, which has its interests in Africa.”