Kyiv (agencies)
The Turkish Ministry of Defense announced the departure of 11 ships loaded with grain, from the Ukrainian ports.
The ministry said, in a statement: “The grain shipments are continuing in a safe manner and according to plan. Today, 11 ships loaded with grain have left Ukraine.
Last July 22, Istanbul witnessed the signing of the “Document on the Safe Shipping Initiative for Grain and Foodstuffs from Ukrainian Ports” between Turkey, Russia, Ukraine and the United Nations.
The agreement included securing exports of grain stuck in the Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea (Eastern Europe) to the world, to address the global food shortage crisis that threatens a humanitarian catastrophe.
And 150 cargo ships, some empty and some loaded, were waiting yesterday at the entrance and exit of the strait, before undergoing the careful inspection process that would allow them to sail, with the possibility of waiting time reaching about 12 days sometimes.
The agreement signed with Kyiv and Moscow under the auspices of the United Nations and Turkey for the export of Ukrainian grain has allowed the transit of more than 630 ships in both directions since it entered into force on August 1.
In total, more than 6.9 million tons of grain went to Europe and the Middle East, and to a lesser extent to Africa, according to the data of the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul, which authorizes and audits the trips.
While the navigation movement with Ukrainian ports returned to normal, the Joint Coordination Center stated in a statement that “the waiting period for the cargo ships leaving (from Ukraine) last week reached an average of 9 days,” referring to the “overcrowding of the Marmara Sea” with ships.
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