(Istanbul) The agreement allowing Ukrainian grain exports from Ukrainian ports has been renewed for the four winter months, alleviating concerns about a possible global food crisis.
The Black Sea Grains Initiative expired Friday night at midnight.
The four parties involved in this agreement, Turkey, Ukraine, Russia and the United Nations confirmed Thursday the continuation of this agreement, “without any change” specified Russian diplomacy in a press release.
“Following four-party talks hosted by Turkey, the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement has been extended for 120 days from November 19,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Thursday in a message on Twitter.
Mr. Erdogan, one of the craftsmen of this agreement, also stressed “the importance and the benefit” of this agreement “for the supply and food security in the world, with nearly 500 boats and more than 11 million tonnes of cereals and food products” delivered since the summer.
On Twitter, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recalled that Kyiv had offered to “extend the Black Sea Initiative indefinitely”. “It’s vital for stability,” he insisted.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres nevertheless “welcomed” the news, via a statement sent by the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) based in Istanbul, which oversees boat movements via the Bosphorus.
According to a senior Turkish official, speaking on condition of anonymity, “the agreement remains in place under the same terms during the winter months” then “new arrangements” could be made at the end of the bad season in black Sea.
Russian fertilizers
Intense negotiations under the aegis of the UN have been conducted in recent weeks to ensure the extension of the agreement while more than ten million tonnes of cereals are still blocked in silos in Ukraine.
These cereals are essential for stabilizing prices on international markets and for supplying the populations most vulnerable to the risk of hunger, particularly in Africa.
Of the 11 million tonnes exported to date, approximately 40% has been served to developing countries.
In his press release, Mr. Guterres also specifies that “the UN is fully committed to removing the obstacles that hinder the export of agricultural products and fertilizers from the Russian Federation”.
Moscow had temporarily disengaged from the agreement and had demanded its suspension last month, after the fall of a missile in annexed Crimea, before returning to it.
Russia “has not formulated new demands”, according to a negotiator. But it has insisted in recent weeks on the principle, approved last summer, of its own exports of fertilizers and food products.
A separate agreement, parallel to that on Ukrainian cereals, was signed at the same time, on July 22 in Istanbul.
Last week, Russian and United Nations negotiators met for several hours at UN headquarters in Geneva.
Agricultural products are not subject to sanctions against Russia, but because of the risks linked to the conflict incurred in the Black Sea, shipowners no longer wanted to hire their ships because they could not find insurance.
According to a source within the United Nations, associated with the negotiations, it was necessary “to work hard” to find the means of guaranteeing the Russian exports of agricultural products and fertilizers.
According to this source, a framework has been established “in matters of insurance, access to ports, financial transactions and access to maritime transport”, consistent with the three systems of sanctions in force, the United States, of the United Kingdom and the European Union.
“This political framework needed to be clarified so that private sector players were ready to re-engage with Russia,” the source explained.
The UN has also “facilitated on a humanitarian basis” the delivery of 260,000 tonnes of Russian fertilizer, the first shipment of which will go to Malawi, one of the poorest countries in southern Africa.
With soaring gas prices, Europe has suspended 70% of its fertilizer production. This shortage plus the virtual absence of Russian fertilizers on the world market caused “a price increase of more than 250% compared to their pre-COVID-19 levels”, in 2020, estimates the UN.
The agreement reached paved the way for continued trade in the Black Sea.