Sun 19 March 2023:
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the United Nations says a pact that had been set to expire on Saturday and permitted the shipping of Ukrainian grain across the Black Sea has been extended.
Erdogan said in a speech on Saturday in the western city of Canakkale that the agreement had been reached after discussions with Russia and Ukraine, although he did not say how long the extension had been for.
Russia said it had agreed to a 60-day extension, while Ukraine’s infrastructure minister said the deal had been extended for 120 days.
The deal between the two warring sides, brokered in July by Turkey and the UN, has seen more than 11 million tonnes of agricultural products shipped from three of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, including 4.5 million tonnes of corn and 3.2 million tonnes of wheat.
“This deal is of vital importance for the global food supply,” Erdogan said in televised comments. “I thank Russia and Ukraine, who didn’t spare their efforts for a new extension, as well as the United Nations secretary general.”
Before the war, Ukraine was one of the world’s top farm producers, and the so-called Black Sea Grain Initiative has helped soothe the global food crunch triggered by the conflict.
Russia’s full-scale invasion in February last year saw Ukraine’s Black Sea ports blocked by warships.
But the grain deal has allowed for the safe passage of exports of critical grain supplies to combat a global food crisis. The initial agreement was extended in November for 120 days.
Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said the latest extension was for another 120 days. Ankara had previously said it wanted a 120-day extension while Russia was in favor of a 60-day extension.
Kubrakov thanked the UN and Turkey for adhering to the agreements in the grain deal.
“[The] Black Sea Grain Initiative agreement is extended for 120 dayss,” Kubrakov said on Twitter. “Grateful to Antonio Guterres, the United Nations, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, [Defence] Minister Hulusi Akar and all our partners for sticking to the agreement.”
#BlackSeaGrainInitiative agreement is extended for 120 days. Grateful to @antonioguterres @UN, President Erdoğan, Minister Hulusi Akar & all our partners for sticking to the agreements. Due our joint efforts, 25M tons of🇺🇦 grain delivered to world markets pic.twitter.com/4bye93iQ7d
— Oleksandr Kubrakov (@OlKubrakov) March 18, 2023
Maria Zakharova, a spokesperson for the Russian foreign ministry, stated: “We are hearing from parties to the ‘grain deal’ that the deal has been extended for 120 days.
“We have repeatedly stated … that the Russian side has notified all parties to the deal that it is extending the deal for 60 days,” Zakharova said.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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