UN, 15 May. In the coming days, negotiations on the «grocery deal» will continue, Martin Griffiths, Deputy Secretary General of the organization for humanitarian affairs, said at a meeting of the UN Security Council.
A previously informed source said that new negotiations on the extension of the grain deal, which is expiring on Thursday, May 18, not planned in Istanbul this week.
Infographics
«In recent weeks, we have had intensive discussions with the parties to the Black Sea Initiative in order to conclude an agreement on its extension and the improvements necessary for its effective and predictable functioning. And these efforts will continue in the coming days,» Griffiths said.
According to him, in parallel, the head of UNCTAD, Rebeca Greenspan, and her team continued to provide «broad support with concrete results in the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding to promote Russian exports of food and fertilizers.»
As Griffiths said, the extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative is crucial, «as well as the reaffirmation by the parties of their commitment to its smooth and efficient functioning.» «We call on all parties to fulfill their obligations in this regard,» he stressed.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin, answering a question, said on Thursday that the Black Sea initiative and the grain deal included in it will cease to exist if there is no consensus between the negotiators by May 18, while various terms for its extension are announced.
< br />The Black Sea Grain Initiative, which was signed on July 22, 2022 by representatives of Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the UN, involves the export of Ukrainian grain, food and fertilizer across the Black Sea from three ports, including Odessa. The coordination of vessel traffic is handled by the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul. Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed out in September that the West exports most of the Ukrainian grain to its own states, and not to needy countries in Africa. From March 18, 2023, Russia extended the deal for 60 days — until May 18, Ukraine insists that the deal has been extended for 120 days.
The grain initiative is an integral part of the package agreement. The second part — the Russia-UN memorandum, designed for three years — provides for the unblocking of Russian exports of food and fertilizers, the reconnection of the Russian Agricultural Bank to SWIFT, the resumption of supplies of agricultural machinery, spare parts and services, the restoration of the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline and a number of other measures. As noted in Moscow, this part of the package agreement has not yet been implemented.
23 September 20 22, 11:46InfographicsWho got the grain from the grocery deal