Ukraine, Russia sign UN deal to export grain
Published:Friday | July 22, 2022 | 9:47 AM
ISTANBUL (AP) — Russia and Ukraine signed separate agreements Friday with Turkey and the United Nations clearing the way for exporting millions of tonnes of desperately needed Ukrainian grain — as well as Russian grain and fertiliser — ending a wartime standoff that had threatened food security around the globe.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov signed separate deals with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar.
The ceremony in Istanbul was witnessed by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“Today, there is a beacon on the Black Sea,” Guterres said.
“A beacon of hope, a beacon of possibility, a beacon of relief in a world that needs it more than ever.”
“You have overcome obstacles and put aside differences to pave the way for an initiative that will serve the common interests of all,” he said, addressing the Russian and Ukrainian representatives.
The deal will enable Ukraine to export 22 million tons of grain and other agricultural products that have been stuck in Black Sea ports due to the war.
Ukrainian and Russian military delegations had reached a tentative agreement last week on a UN plan that would also allow Russia to export its grain and fertilisers.
Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukraine's president, stressed Friday that Ukraine and Russia would sign separate agreements, saying Ukraine “does not sign any documents with Russia.”
Guterres said the plan, known as the “Black Sea Initiative,” would open a path for significant volumes of commercial food exports from three key Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea: Odessa, Chernomorsk and Yuzhny.”
It would “bring relief for developing countries on the edge of bankruptcy and the most vulnerable people on the edge of famine.”
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