Guterres made a statement to reporters at the UN headquarters in New York regarding the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which has been extended for another 60 days.
Stating that he welcomed the extension of the initiative until July 18, Guterres said, “The continuation of the initiative is good news for the world.”
Guterres stated that some problems regarding the initiative continue and that Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the UN will continue to discuss these issues.
Emphasizing that he hopes for a comprehensive agreement to improve, expand and extend the initiative, Guterres thanked the parties for conducting the negotiations in a positive atmosphere.
“I am grateful to President Erdogan and the Turkish government for their efforts, working in coordination with the UN for the Black Sea Grain Initiative,” said UN Secretary General Guterres.
Pointing out that the importance of the Black Sea Grain Initiative and the memorandum of understanding between the UN and Russia is very clear, Guterres said, “These agreements are important for global food security. Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world. Thanks to the Black Sea Grain Initiative, 30 million tons of grain were exported.” he said.
Guterres pointed out that it is important for food to reach those who need it most in this time of high cost of living around the world.
Stating that the market has become more stable and global food prices have decreased by 20 percent in the last year thanks to the initiative, Guterres said, “The initiative also shows that even in the darkest moment, there is a glimmer of hope and an opportunity can be found that can benefit everyone.” used the phrases.
President Erdogan announced the extension
President Erdoğan said: “With the efforts of our country, the support of our Russian friends and the contributions of our Ukrainian friends, it has been decided to extend the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement for another 2 months. This decision is of vital importance for the uninterrupted operation of global food supply chains and especially for facilitating grain access for countries in need. I wish you well.” had made a statement.
While the technical delegations of Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the UN met in Istanbul at the beginning of May, hosted by Turkey, they came together in a four-way format with the participation of the deputy ministers of defense of the countries on May 10-11.
Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar, in his evaluation of the meetings in the format of four, said, “The meeting in Istanbul was positive. An agreement is being reached on the extension of the grain agreement.” had used the phrase.
More than 30 million tons of grain were transported
The amount of grain passing through the “grain corridor” created by Turkey’s efforts to eliminate the risk of “food crisis” due to the Russia-Ukraine War exceeded 30 million 250 thousand tons.
Within the scope of the ongoing shipment, the number of ships leaving the Ukrainian ports as of yesterday reached 951.
40% of the grain passing through the corridor was transported to Europe, 30% to Asia, 13% to Turkey, 12% to Africa and 5% to the Middle East.