Read the original article in Al Jazeera
Russian and Ukrainian officials have signed a deal to reopen grain exports from Ukrainian Black Sea ports, as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan said the agreement would help ease a global food crisis.
The neighbouring, warring countries are among the world’s biggest exporters of food, but Russia’s invasion led to a de-facto blockade of the Black Sea, resulting in Ukraine’s exports dropping to a sixth of their pre-war level.
Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu and Ukraine’s infrastructure minister, Oleksandr Kubrakov, signed the deal separately on Friday, carefully avoiding sitting at the same table and avoiding shaking hands.
The signing ceremony took place at Istanbul’s lavish Dolmabahce Palace in the presence of Erdogan and Guterres.
“Today, there is a beacon on the Black Sea. A beacon of hope (and) possibility… and relief in a world that needs it more than ever,” Guterres said, calling on Russia and Ukraine to fully implement the accord.
In light of the deal, which was brokered by Ankara and the UN, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he expected that the blockade on his country’s seaports will soon be lifted.
The agreement is valid for 120 days – long enough to clear a backlog of up to 25 million tonnes of wheat and other grain stuck in Ukrainian ports.
It may be automatically renewed without further negotiations.
According to UN officials, under the agreement a coalition of Turkish, Ukrainian and UN staff will monitor the loading of grain on to vessels in Ukrainian ports before navigating a pre-planned route through the Black Sea, which remains heavily mined by Ukrainian and Russian forces.
Ukrainian pilot vessels will guide commercial vessels transporting the grain in order to navigate the mined areas around the coastline using a map of safe channels provided by the Ukrainian side.
The vessels will then cross the Black Sea towards Turkey’s Bosphorus strait while being closely monitored by a joint coordination centre in Istanbul, containing representatives from the UN, Ukraine, Russia and Turkey.
Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from Istanbul, said another detail relates to the inspection of ships.
“Russia is concerned that weapons might be brought via ships to Ukraine and Ukraine is concerned about the safety of its grain deliveries to world markets,” she said.
Accordingly, ships entering Ukraine will be inspected under the supervision of the same joint coordination centre to ensure they are not carrying weapons.
The Russian and Ukrainian sides will also withhold attacks on any of the commercial vessels or ports engaged in the initiative to transport vital grain, while UN and Turkish monitors will be present in Ukrainian ports in order to demarcate areas protected by the agreement.
The blockade has worsened global supply chain disruptions and along with Western sanctions imposed on Moscow, stoked inflation in food prices since Russian forces swept into Ukraine on February 24.
Russia, Ukraine and Turkey will gather on Friday to sign a deal proposed by the United Nations to free up grain exports from Ukraine's besieged Black Sea ports, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's office said on Thursday.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who earlier announced that he was heading to Istanbul on Thursday, will attend the event along with Erdogan at the Dolmabahce Palace offices at 1330 GMT, the statement said.
The neighbouring, warring countries are among the world’s biggest exporters of food, but Russia’s invasion led to a de-facto blockade of the Black Sea, resulting in Ukraine’s exports dropping to a sixth of their pre-war level.
Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu and Ukraine’s infrastructure minister, Oleksandr Kubrakov, signed the deal separately on Friday, carefully avoiding sitting at the same table and avoiding shaking hands.
The signing ceremony took place at Istanbul’s lavish Dolmabahce Palace in the presence of Erdogan and Guterres.
“Today, there is a beacon on the Black Sea. A beacon of hope (and) possibility… and relief in a world that needs it more than ever,” Guterres said, calling on Russia and Ukraine to fully implement the accord.
In light of the deal, which was brokered by Ankara and the UN, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he expected that the blockade on his country’s seaports will soon be lifted.
The agreement is valid for 120 days – long enough to clear a backlog of up to 25 million tonnes of wheat and other grain stuck in Ukrainian ports.
It may be automatically renewed without further negotiations.
According to UN officials, under the agreement a coalition of Turkish, Ukrainian and UN staff will monitor the loading of grain on to vessels in Ukrainian ports before navigating a pre-planned route through the Black Sea, which remains heavily mined by Ukrainian and Russian forces.
Ukrainian pilot vessels will guide commercial vessels transporting the grain in order to navigate the mined areas around the coastline using a map of safe channels provided by the Ukrainian side.
The vessels will then cross the Black Sea towards Turkey’s Bosphorus strait while being closely monitored by a joint coordination centre in Istanbul, containing representatives from the UN, Ukraine, Russia and Turkey.
Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from Istanbul, said another detail relates to the inspection of ships.
“Russia is concerned that weapons might be brought via ships to Ukraine and Ukraine is concerned about the safety of its grain deliveries to world markets,” she said.
Accordingly, ships entering Ukraine will be inspected under the supervision of the same joint coordination centre to ensure they are not carrying weapons.
The Russian and Ukrainian sides will also withhold attacks on any of the commercial vessels or ports engaged in the initiative to transport vital grain, while UN and Turkish monitors will be present in Ukrainian ports in order to demarcate areas protected by the agreement.
The blockade has worsened global supply chain disruptions and along with Western sanctions imposed on Moscow, stoked inflation in food prices since Russian forces swept into Ukraine on February 24.
Russia, Ukraine and Turkey will gather on Friday to sign a deal proposed by the United Nations to free up grain exports from Ukraine's besieged Black Sea ports, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's office said on Thursday.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who earlier announced that he was heading to Istanbul on Thursday, will attend the event along with Erdogan at the Dolmabahce Palace offices at 1330 GMT, the statement said.
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