One last vessel is set to leave Ukraine today (Wednesday, May 17), before the Black Sea Grain Initiative as it currently stands could be ended by Russia tomorrow (Thursday, May 18).
The deal brokered by the United Nations (UN) and Turkey has allowed Ukraine to export more than 30 million tonnes of grain from several of its Black Sea ports since last July.
Although the deal was extended in March, Russia previously indicated that it will not allow the deal to continue after May 18, unless its demands around grain and fertiliser exports are met.
It remains yet to be seen whether Russia agrees to further extend the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
Black Sea grain deal
A cargo of 30,000t of corn destined for Turkey is set to depart from Chornomorsk today, according to the Joint Coordination Centre, which monitors vessel movements and carries out inspections.
Six further vessels carrying almost 180,000t of grain that have left the ports of Chornomorsk and Odesa over the past days are currently awaiting inspection.
Of those vessels, 62,000t of corn are destined for Saudi Arabia; 19,800t of sunflower meal for Morocco; 32,611t of corn and 8,704t of soya beans for Egypt; 30,000t of wheat for Sudan; and 26,250t of wheat for Turkey.
Based in Istanbul, the Joint Coordination Centre consists of senior representatives from Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the UN.
To date, almost 600,000t of grain have been shipped by vessels chartered by the World Food Programme in support of its humanitarian operations in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Yemen.
Talks on the future of the Black Sea Grain Initiative were held in Istanbul last week with senior-level officials from Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the UN.
Following last week’s talks, Ukraine’s Minister for Infrastructure, Oleksandr Kubrakov said that further online talks have been suggested by officials from the UN and Turkey.
Earlier this week (Monday, May 15), the UK urged Russia to stop threatening to leave the Black Sea Grain Initiative and to instead agree to a sustained and stable deal.
In a statement at the UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine, Ambassador Barbara Woodward said: “We urge Russia to stop threatening to leave the initiative and, instead, to agree to a sustained and stable deal.”
