Moscow (agencies)
Russia has sent the first shipments of free grain promised to Africa, Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev said yesterday.
The minister said in a statement, “The first two ships left the Russian ports towards Somalia and Burkina Faso. We expect them to arrive there between the end of November and the beginning of December.” Russian news agencies quoted him as saying during a forum that each ship carries 25,000 tons of grain.
Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged in July to send 200,000 tons of free grain to 6 African countries.
The pledge came shortly after Moscow withdrew from a United Nations-sponsored agreement that guaranteed the safe passage of Ukraine’s agricultural exports from its southern ports overlooking the Black Sea. Russia and Ukraine are among the largest producing and exporting countries of agricultural products. Patrushev confirmed that other shipments intended for the Central African Republic, Eritrea, Mali and Zimbabwe will be sent before the end of the year.
Earlier this year, he hosted a high-level summit of African leaders in St. Petersburg that included exhibitions of Russian companies.
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