“The first boat, the first ship is being loaded from the beginning of the war,” Zelensky, wearing his signature olive T-shirt, told reporters as he stood next to a Turkish-flagged ship in the port of Chernomorsk in the Odesa region. He said, however, that the departure of wheat and other grains would begin with several ships that were already loaded but could not leave Ukrainian ports after Russia invaded in late February. Ukraine is a key global exporter of wheat, barley, corn and sunflower oil, and the loss of those supplies has raised global food prices, threatened political instability and pushed more people into poverty and hunger in already vulnerable countries. Ukraine’s military is committed to ship security, Zelensky said, adding that “it is important for us that Ukraine remains the guarantor of global food security.” His unannounced visit to the port is part of a wider push by Ukraine to show the world it is almost ready to export millions of tonnes of grain following last week’s breakthrough deals brokered by Turkey and the United Nations and signed separately by Ukraine and Russia. The sides agreed to facilitate the shipment of wheat and other grains from three Ukrainian ports through safe Black Sea corridors, as well as fertilizers and food from Russia. But a Russian missile attack on Odesa hours after the deal was signed cast doubt on Moscow’s commitment and raised new concerns about the safety of shipping crews, who must also navigate waters strewn with explosive mines. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed the importance of maintaining a “connection between the withdrawal of grain from Ukrainian ports and the disengagement of direct or indirect restrictions on our exports of grain, fertilizers and other goods to world markets.” Security concerns and the complexity of the deals have led to a slow, cautious start, with no grain yet leaving Ukrainian ports. The sides are facing a ticking clock – the deal is only good for 120 days. The goal over the next four months is to get about 20 million tons of grain from three Ukrainian seaports that have been blocked since the February 24 invasion. This provides time for about four to five large bulk trucks a day to transport grain from ports to millions of people in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, who are already facing food shortages and, in some cases, famine. The removal of grain is also critical for farmers in Ukraine, who are running out of storage capacity amid a new harvest. “We are ready,” Ukraine’s infrastructure minister, Oleksandr Kubrakov, told reporters at the port of Odessa on Friday. However, he said Ukraine was waiting for the UN to confirm the safe lanes the ships would use. Meanwhile, a ship in the port of Chernomorsk was being loaded with grain, he said. Martin Griffiths, the UN official who brokered the deals, warned that work was still being done to finalize the exact coordinates of the safest routes, saying this needed to be “absolutely cleared”. Lloyd’s List, a global publisher of shipping news, noted that while UN officials are pushing for the initial voyage this week to show progress on the deal, continued uncertainty over key details will likely prevent an immediate increase in shipments. “Until these logistical issues and the detailed descriptions of underwriting procedures are disseminated, charters will not be agreed and underwriters will not undertake shipments,” Lloyd’s List’s Bridget Diakun and Richard Meade wrote. They note, however, that UN agencies such as the World Food Program have already arranged to charter much of the grain for urgent humanitarian needs. Shipping companies have been slow since the deal was signed a week ago as explosive mines drift across the waters, shipowners assess the risks and many still have questions about how the deal will play out. Ukraine, Turkey and the UN are trying to show that they are acting according to the agreement. Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar told Al Jazeera on Thursday that “the agreement has started in practice” and that the first ship leaving Ukraine with grain is expected to leave “very soon”. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu expressed similar optimism at a news conference, calling the deal a major step forward between the warring sides. “This is not just a step taken to remove barriers to food exports. If implemented successfully, it will be a serious confidence-building measure for both sides,” he said. The agreement stipulates that Russia and Ukraine provide “maximum guarantees” for ships that dare to travel to the Ukrainian ports of Odessa, Chernomorsk and Yuzhny. Smaller Ukrainian pilot boats will guide the ships through approved corridors. The entire operation will be overseen by a Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul, staffed by officials from Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations. Once the ships arrive in port, they will be loaded with grain before heading back to the Bosphorus, where they will be boarded to be inspected for weapons. There will also likely be inspections of ships boarding in Ukraine.
Associated Press writers Aya Batrawy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey. and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.
