Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, left, receives Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, right, at the organization’s headquarters in Cairo on July 24. (Khaled Desouki/AFP/Getty Images)
Russia and Turkey will use “military naval forces” to escort ships carrying Ukrainian grain across the Black Sea to the Bosphorus once shipping resumes, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Sunday.
Lavrov added that “another participant, to be determined” will also be escorting ships carrying Ukrainian grain, without elaborating.
“Ukraine clears mines, lets ships out to sea, Russia, Turkey, along with another participant, to be determined, escort convoys to the [Bosporus] straits,” Lavrov said during a meeting with Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit in the Egyptian capital Cairo.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s defense ministry said in a statement that “coordination between authorities continues so that the first ship loaded with grain starts sailing from Ukrainian ports as soon as possible.”
Ukraine and Russia agreed on Friday to a deal that would allow vital grain exports from Ukrainian Black Sea ports to resume, a major diplomatic breakthrough aimed at easing the global food crisis sparked by the war. As part of the deal, grain ships would navigate a safe corridor in the Black Sea under the guidance of Ukrainian pilots and then pass through the Bosphorus Strait, a major shipping corridor in northwestern Turkey, to reach in global markets.
Ukraine blamed: During an earlier meeting with his Egyptian counterpart, Lavrov blamed Ukraine for stalling any further negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv.
“We have no prejudice against resuming negotiations on a wider range of issues … the Ukrainian authorities, starting with the president … consistently state that there will be no negotiations until Ukraine defeats Russia on the battlefield,” he said . The longer they continue to demand that Ukraine fight to the end – and we all understand what will come and whose end – the more people will die and the longer the current situation will persist.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov addresses the Arab League meeting at its headquarters in Cairo on July 24. (Khaled Desouki/AFP/Getty Images)
Africa tour: Egypt is the first stop on Lavrov’s Africa trip, where he will also meet with senior officials from Ethiopia, Uganda and the Republic of Congo. Egypt is the world’s largest importer of wheat, relying heavily on Ukraine and Russia for supplies to feed its 100 million people.
Lavrov’s trip is aimed at rallying support and reaffirming alliances with Russia, and comes a week after US President Joe Biden visited Israel, the West Bank and Saudi Arabia.
Most African countries have not condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as they have tried to maintain a balance in their relations with Russia and Western countries.