Ukraine has announced that a new temporary “humanitarian corridor” is in operation in the Black Sea and that the first ships are expected to use it in a few days. Ukrainian navy spokesman Oleh Chalyk told Reuters that the corridor will be used to transport grain and agricultural products by merchant ships stranded in Ukraine’s Black Sea ports. “The corridor will be very transparent, we will put cameras on the ships, and it will be a broadcast showing that this is a purely humanitarian mission and not a military purpose,” Chalyk said.
The navy said in a statement that the routes were proposed directly to the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The routes are said to have been “used for civilian ships in the Ukrainian ports of Chornomorsk, Odessa and Pivdenny since the start of the large-scale invasion of Russia on February 24, 2022.” In the statement, “Ships whose owners/masters have officially confirmed that they are ready to sail under the current conditions will be allowed to pass through these routes,” the statement said. However, the mine risk and military threat from Russia remain. “People want more details about the makeshift Ukrainian shipping channel announced today because it can’t work unless Russia makes concrete commitments not to attack the ships,” a German grain trader told Reuters.
On July 17, Moscow decided to end Ukraine’s participation in an agreement that allowed the Federation to export grain by sea despite the maritime blockade, ending the agreement that helped stabilize food prices around the world. The agreement was mediated by the United Nations and Turkey in July 2022 to help alleviate the global food crisis following the invasion that began on February 24 last year. After the Vladimir Putin-led country withdrew from the deal, it began hitting Ukrainian ports and grain infrastructure in the Black Sea and Danube, and global grain prices soared. Ukrainian officials say Moscow hit 26 port facilities, five civilian ships and 180,000 tons of grain in the first nine days of breaking the deal.
Ukrainian ports on the Danube, such as Izmail, accounted for about a quarter of grain exports before Russia withdrew from the treaty and have since become the main point of departure, with grain shipped via the river by barge to Romania’s Black Sea port of Constance. from there it will be shipped later. While Kiev’s goal is for international ships to go directly to Danube ports and load directly, Moscow says it will treat ships bound for Ukrainian ports as potential military targets.
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Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
