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The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, said: Returning to work in accordance with the grain agreement is one of the vital tasks of the United Nations in ensuring global food security. Guterres added, in a press conference, “We must do everything possible to remove a number of restrictions that exist today at the level of the international trade structure.” The Secretary-General stressed that “one of the main goals in this field lies in restoring the Black Sea Initiative,” noting that in order to restore the grain deal, it is necessary to establish a system of mutual guarantees between the concerned and relevant parties.
On July 18, Russia announced a halt to work on the grain deal.
On a related note, a Turkish source who participated in the technical side of the grain deal said that Ankara and Moscow will soon discuss, “maybe next week,” a project to deliver Russian grain to countries in need.
The source stressed that both sides confirm the determination to start deliveries quickly.
In response to a question about the status of negotiations regarding the resumption of work in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the source indicated that “the situation is still complex.”
He said, “A lot will relate to the negotiations at the G-20 summit and the United Nations General Assembly, but regarding the risks of rising prices and the overall food crisis, we are concerned.”
Earlier, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko announced that Moscow and Ankara had reached a preliminary agreement regarding the supply of one million tons of grain, and work on technical details would begin in the near future.
In the context, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, Yulia Sviridenko, announced that the Kiev authorities have started using Croatian ports to export grain.
Sviridenko took part in a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the “Three Seas Initiative” summit in Bucharest, and discussed with Croatian Prime Minister Andrei Plenkovic issues of opening new trade routes for the export of Ukrainian grain.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Economy quoted Sviridenko as saying, “Ukrainian grain has already started to be exported through Croatian ports. We are ready to develop and expand the capabilities of this corridor, and we believe that this logistical route will play an important role in bilateral trade between our two countries.”
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