The first shipment of Ukrainian grain will leave the port of Odessa at 05:30 GMT on Monday, in accordance with the terms of the agreement with Russia signed in Istanbul, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced.
“The cargo ship Razoni flying the flag of Sierra Leone and loaded with maize will leave the port of Odessa bound for Lebanon at 8:30 a.m.,” the ministry said in a statement.
Other convoys will follow this first departure while respecting “the (maritime) corridor and the agreed formalities”, adds the ministry.
Signed on July 22 in Istanbul, the deal that allows Ukrainian exports to resume aims to ease a global food crisis that has seen prices soar in some of the world’s poorest countries.
According to the Marine Traffic site, which tracks the movements of boats, the Razoni was still docked Monday at 05:00 GMT in the port of Odessa to which it signified its departure at 04:30 GMT.
Built in 1996 and 186 m long by 25 wide, the Razoni has a hold capacity of 30,000 tonnes.
The Joint Coordination Center (JCC), responsible for controlling Ukrainian grain exports via the Black Sea, was inaugurated in Istanbul on Wednesday in accordance with the agreement.
It brings together representatives of the two belligerents, as well as Turkey and the United Nations.
The CCC must register and monitor the merchant ships that will participate in the convoys, ensure their follow-up via the internet and by satellite, have the ships inspected at the time of loading in Ukrainian ports and upon their arrival in Turkish ports.