Posted in: 06/08/2022 – 21:44
Beirut (AFP) – The ship carrying the first grain shipment exported by Ukraine since the February 24 Russian invasion will not dock in Lebanon on Sunday as expected, the Ukrainian embassy in Lebanon told AFP on Saturday.
The Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship “Razoni” left the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odessa on Monday with 26,000 tons of corn following Ukraine and Russia signed separate agreements brokered by Turkey and under the auspices of the United Nations.
On Wednesday, Turkish and Russian experts inspected the ship off the coast of Istanbul, before its scheduled arrival date, according to the Ukrainian embassy in Lebanon, on Sunday at 10:00 am (07:00 GMT) to the port of Tripoli in northern Lebanon.
“We would like to inform you of the postponement of the arrival of the Razzoni ship, expected tomorrow,” the Ukrainian embassy in Lebanon said in a message received by AFP.
In response to a question regarding the reasons for the delay, the embassy told AFP that it “has no other information” at the moment.
An informed official source confirmed to AFP that the ship may not dock in Lebanon if it manages to sell its cargo to a merchant in another country.
“The ship will not go to Lebanon except in one case: if a merchant buys its shipment,” the source said, requesting anonymity.
The agreements Ukraine and Russia signed in Istanbul on July 22 aim to allow the export of war-stalled Ukrainian grain and Russian agricultural products despite Western sanctions, to alleviate the global food crisis and price hikes in some of the poorest countries.
The Turkish Defense Ministry said a convoy of three new shipments of maize left Ukraine on Friday. She added that the three ships will unload their cargo in Ireland, England and Turkey.
© 2022 AFP