The three Ukrainian ports designated for carrying out grain exports”work resumed“Although efforts are still being made to ensure the security of the corridors, the Ukrainian Navy announced on Wednesday.
“In the framework of the signing of an agreement to unblock Ukrainian ports for the export of grain, the ports of Odessa, Chornomorsk and Pivdenny resumed work“, announced the Navy in a message published on the Telegram network.
At the same time, the Joint Coordination Center, responsible for controlling Ukraine’s grain exports through the Black Sea, was opened in the Turkish city of Istanbul, under the terms of the agreement signed last Friday.
The exit and entry of the ships in the maritime ports will be done through a corridor created by the main ship. But this will be preceded by the hard work of hydrographic engineers” to determine safe routes, the Navy added.
The Ukrainian government had already said on Monday that it hoped to resume grain exports this week, which are crucial to global food security as food prices have soared since the start of the Russian invasion.
kyiv says grain exports could start this week
Ukraine and Russia on Friday signed agreements with Turkey and the UN to unblock the export of some 25 million tons of grain blocked at Black Sea ports.
Attacks on the port of Odessa. “Russia has signed the grain agreement, but it is making it unfeasible in practice”
In a ceremony held at the Dolmabahçe Palace in the Turkish city of Istanbul, mediated by Ankara and the UN, two similar but separate documents were signed, as Ukraine refused to sign the same paper as Russia. The protocol will be valid for four months, however, it is renewable.
The Istanbul agreement includes two documents: one on Ukrainian grain exports and one on the export of Russian agricultural products and fertilizers.
The documents determined the creation of the control center in Istanbul, headed by representatives of the parties involved: a Ukrainian, a Russian, a Turk and a UN representative, who will have to establish the rotation schedule of the ships.
The deal also means ships carrying grain will be inspected to ensure they are not carrying weapons to Ukraine.
These inspections, which will be carried out both at the departure and arrival of the ships, begin today in Istanbul by the Joint Coordination Center.
The day after the agreements were signed, Russia attacked the commercial port of Odessa, a key point for grain exports, and on Tuesday the port of Mykolaiv.
Source: Observadora
