On Thursday, the Turkish presidency announced that Russia and Ukraine will sign an agreement on the export of grain in Istanbul on Friday afternoon.
The presidency added that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, as well as representatives of Russia and Ukraine, will participate in the signing ceremony at 13:30 GMT at Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul.
The agreement would enable the release through the Black Sea of Ukraine’s war-strapped grain while easing restrictions on the export of Russian grain and fertilizer.
On Thursday morning, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced that reaching an agreement on the export of Ukrainian grain “is possible in the coming days.”
“We have hope about the grain. We hope to announce good news in the coming days,” Cavusoglu said during an interview with the official TRT channel, adding that he was “optimistic.”
In New York, UN Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq expected that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres would soon arrive in Istanbul.
“The Secretary-General will travel to Istanbul in the evening (Thursday) as part of his efforts to ensure full global access to Ukrainian food products and to Russian food and fertilizers,” he said.
Guterres is spending a vacation near Turkey and recently expressed his willingness to cut short his vacation in order to sign an agreement in Istanbul.
The spokesman explained that the Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths, who participated in the negotiations on the export of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea, will also be present in Istanbul, in addition to Rebecca Greenspan, who heads the United Nations Agency on Trade and Development.
Greenspan visited Moscow recently and was tasked with negotiating the easing of restrictions that indirectly affect the export of Russian grain and fertilizer in light of the international sanctions imposed on Moscow, especially by the United States and the European Union.
A diplomat, who did not want to reveal his identity, said that Washington had recently promised guarantees that transport companies would be able to provide Russia with ships of large tonnage in order to export its grain and fertilizer without sanctions affecting this matter.
Moscow said that these sanctions only allow it to use small vessels not suitable for transporting its exports.
“Even if the sanctions do not target Russian (agricultural) products, there is a ban targeting shipping, insurance companies and the banking system. The United States and the European Union promised to lift it,” the Turkish foreign minister continued.
As for Ukrainian grain, the deal being negotiated aims to re-use the Black Sea through secure passages and a ceasefire in transit areas.
It also provides for an inspection of commercial ships, likely to be carried out by Turkey, to ensure that no weapons are transported by ships that will sail to the city of Odessa to ship grain.
Diplomats spoke of the possibility of establishing a coordination center in Istanbul with the participation of UN experts specializing in maritime navigation.
American welcome
The United States praised the agreement and urged Russia to implement it. “We welcome the announcement of the agreement in principle, but what we are focusing on now is holding Russia responsible for implementing it and enabling Ukrainian grain to reach global markets,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters.
“We shouldn’t have been in this situation in the first place,” Price added. “This was a deliberate decision by the Russian Federation to use food as a weapon.”
It is hoped that the upcoming agreement between Ukraine and Russia will lead to a decline in prices, which have risen significantly in recent months.
The food crisis that resulted from this situation threatens many countries with the risk of famine, especially in sub-Saharan Africa.