Three new grain cargo ships left Ukrainian ports this morning for the Black Sea humanitarian corridor, the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) in Istanbul announced.
“The movements of these three ships were approved by the Ukrainian, Turkish and United Nations delegations. The Russian delegation was informed,” a source at the JCC, which monitors Ukraine’s grain exports, told the French news agency AFP. after the international agreement signed last July
Russia, which announced on Friday that it was “suspending” its participation in the agreement, warned on Monday of the “danger” of continuing to navigate the corridor without its agreement.
Moscow, which has denounced a drone attack in Crimea, demands that “Ukraine guarantee security” in the maritime corridor.
Turkey and the United Nations are trying to overcome Russian objections.
“The UN coordinator for the ‘Black Sea Grains Initiative’, Amir Abdulla, is continuing talks with the signatory states of the agreement to resume their full participation in the JCC,” the Center said.
On Saturday, the Russian delegation announced that it would not participate in any more ship inspections.
The JCC specifies that despite the withdrawal of Russian inspectors, 46 ships were inspected on Monday and may be allowed to use the Black Sea corridor in both directions.
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu spoke with their Russian counterparts to underline the importance of the Black Sea corridor for grain transportation.
The international agreement, which expires on November 19, aims to allow the resumption of Ukrainian exports to avoid a serious food crisis, especially in Africa.
Source: TSF
