After months of lockdown, Ukraine could restart its agricultural exports by sea on Monday. The world is eagerly waiting.
Kyiv/Moscow/Ankara. After the months-long blockade of Ukrainian ports by the Russian Black Sea Fleet and the consequent disconnection of agricultural exports with global consequences, a change for the better could take place on Monday: Turkey must start exporting grain from Ukraine through the Bosphorus and beyond by the weekend to Monday to distant ports. The likelihood of a grain-laden ship leaving a Ukrainian port on Monday morning is very high, a spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Sunday. There are “only one or two details to sort out”.
Treaty of Istanbul
About a week ago, after much effort, Russia and Ukraine, along with Turkey and the UN, signed an agreement in Istanbul to allow the export of grain from certain Ukrainian ports, in which the Russians should not interfere. Reportedly, more than 20 million tonnes of grains such as wheat and corn are still waiting to be exported from last year’s crop. After the Russian invasion in February, port operations were suspended for security reasons, especially as both the Ukrainians and Russians were in mining water zones.