Ukraine grain export deal extended for winter

The agreement allowing the export of Ukrainian grain from Ukrainian ports has been extended and will continue for four winter months, easing concerns about a possible global food crisis.

“The Black Sea Grain Initiative will be extended by 120 days,” said Ukraine’s Infrastructure Minister Oleksandre Kubrakov, referring to the agreement, which will expire next Saturday.

He added that this is an important step in tackling the global food crisis.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in a statement on his Twitter account, “After the four-way talks hosted by Turkey, the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement has been extended for 120 days from 19 November.” said.

Erdogan, one of the architects of this agreement, stressed the “importance and benefit” of the agreement “for world food supply and security”, with nearly 500 ships and more than 11 million tons of grain and food products delivered since summer. (winter in Brazil).

UN Secretary-General António Guterres received the news “with pleasure” in a statement delivered by the Istanbul-based Joint Coordination Center (GCC), which oversees ship movements in the Bosphorus.

A senior Turkish official, who asked not to be named, said the “agreement will be held for 120 days during the winter” and “further arrangements” could be made later.

Russia, Turkey, the UN and Ukraine approved the renewal “without any changes” after announcing the earlier extension.

“The Russian side authorizes the technical expansion of the ‘Black Sea Initiative’ without any change in terms and scope,” Russian diplomacy said in a statement.

At the end of October, Moscow temporarily withdrew from this agreement after condemning Ukraine’s use of the humanitarian corridor for “military purposes”.

In recent weeks, more than 10 million tons of grain remain locked in silos in Ukraine, with intense UN-mediated negotiations to secure its extension.

These grains are essential to stabilize prices in international markets and feed the most vulnerable populations at risk of starvation, especially in Africa.

Approximately 40% of the 11 million tons exported to date has been shipped to developing countries.

Russian fertilizers

“The UN is also determined to remove barriers to exports of agricultural products and fertilizers from the Russian Federation,” Guterres said in a statement.

Although Russia has not made “new demands” this time, it has insisted on its own exports of fertilizers and food products in recent weeks, in a policy approved last summer, according to one negotiator.

Last week, Russian and United Nations negotiators met for hours at UN headquarters in Geneva.

Agricultural products are not subject to sanctions against Russia, but due to the risks of conflict in the Black Sea, shipowners did not agree to charter their ships due to lack of security.

It took “hard work” to find a way to secure Russia’s exports of agricultural products and fertilizers, according to a UN source close to the negotiations.

It has been possible to establish a framework “in terms of insurance, port access, financial transactions and access to maritime transport” consistent with the three sanction systems in place in the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union. source.

“This political framework needed to be clarified so that private sector actors could re-engage with Russia,” he explained.

In addition, the UN “facilitated” the delivery of 260,000 tons of Russian fertilizers on a humanitarian basis. The first shipment will go to Malawi, one of South Africa’s most destitute countries.

With rising gas prices, Europe suspended 70% of its fertilizer production. According to the UN, this shortage and the near absence of Russian fertilizers on the world market will cause “prices to increase by more than 250% compared to pre-pandemic levels” in 2020.

The agreement reached paved the way for the continuation of trade in the Black Sea.