Ukraine and Russia signed two separate agreements with Turkey and the United Nations on the export of grain and agricultural products through the Black Sea in Istanbul on Friday.
Kyiv has refused to sign the text directly with Moscow, which has agreed to an identical deal with Ankara and the UN Secretary General. The ceremony took place under the flags of the protagonists, those of Russia and Ukraine carefully separated by the blue banners of the UN and the red banners of Turkey, which has offered itself as a mediator since the beginning of the Russian invasion on February 24.
This agreement, fiercely negotiated since April under the impetus of Antonio Guterres, who arrived urgently in Istanbul on Thursday night, will relieve the countries dependent on the Russian and Ukrainian markets, 30% of the world trade in wheat between them. The head of the UN thanked Russia and Ukraine for “overcoming their differences to make way for an initiative at the service of all”. Now the deal “must be fully implemented,” he pleaded.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan admitted that “it has not been easy” to get there, and hoped that the signing of this agreement, which comes almost five months after the start of the conflict, “reinforces the hope of ending this war.” According to the World Food Program (WFP), 47 million more people have been exposed to “acute hunger” since the beginning of the war.
“Unprecedented”
A few hours before the ceremony, Ukraine clarified that it would not sign “any documents with Russia”, but only with Turkey and the UN. The Russians have signed an identical agreement with these two parties. Antonio Guterres, however, pointed out the “unprecedented” character of this agreement concluded between two countries at war.
Under the terms of this agreement, “safe corridors” will allow the movement of merchant ships in the Black Sea, which “both sides have agreed not to attack,” said a United Nations official who requested anonymity. The negotiators gave up cleaning the Black Sea of mines, placed mainly by the Ukrainians to protect their coasts: “Removing the mines would have taken too long”, justified the UN, which specified that the “Ukrainian pilots” would clear the way for the ships of cargo in territorial waters.
Ukraine has suggested that its exports start from three ports: Odessa, Pivdenny and Chornomorsk, and hopes to increase their number in the future. The deal will be valid for “120 days,” or four months, the time to remove the roughly 25 million tons stacked in silos in Ukraine as a new harvest approaches. This weekend a Joint Coordination Center (JCC) will be established in Istanbul with representatives from all parties and the United Nations.
Inspections of ships departing from and going to Ukrainian ports will be carried out under the supervision of the CCC, in one of the ports of Istanbul, to respond to concerns from Moscow, which wants to ensure that cargo ships do not carry weapons. . to Ukraine
“Immediate response”
On July 13, a first round of negotiations between military experts from the three countries involved and the UN took place in Istanbul, from which some optimism arose. Uncertainty then set in following demands made by Moscow at the end of the Iran-Russia-Turkey tripartite summit in Tehran on Tuesday. Russia has finally obtained assurances that Western sanctions will not apply, directly or indirectly, to its own exports of agricultural products and fertilizers.
“Even if Russian (agricultural) products are not affected by sanctions, there are blockades in shipping, insurance and the banking system,” Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu explained on Thursday. In addition, a diplomat in New York said, the United States has offered “guarantees” that large-tonnage ships will be provided to Russia to facilitate the export of its grains and fertilizers.
Due to the sanctions, the international logistics companies that own such buildings are reluctant to work for Moscow. The United States welcomed the deal on Thursday, warning that it held “Russia responsible for (its) implementation.” But mistrust remains in Kyiv: “There is no Russian escort and no Russian presence in our ports. In case of provocation, immediate military response,” Mikhaïlo Podoliak, adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, tweeted on Friday.
Source: BFM TV
