Russia and Ukraine confirmed on the 17th that the agreement for the export of agricultural products from the Black Sea port will be extended for another two months, until July 18th.
At a regular press conference on the 17th, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zaharova said that the Russian side confirmed the truth of the information announced earlier that day by President Erdogan of Türkiye on the extension of the food agreement for two months, which provided an opportunity to ensure global food security. She also emphasized that the principled evaluation of the Istanbul Agreement by the Russian side has not changed, and the "bias" in the implementation process of the agreement should be "corrected as soon as possible".
On the same day, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Kublakov said on social media that with the efforts of the United Nations and Türkiye, the agreement on the export of agricultural products from the Black Sea port has been renewed and the new agreement will be extended from May 18 to July 18. Ukraine welcomes the renewal of the agreement and hopes that all parties involved can work together to ensure its effective implementation.
Kublakov said that since the signing of the agreement in July 2022, Ukraine has transported 30.4 million tons of agricultural products through the Black Sea Grain Corridor. Since April this year, the implementation of the agreement has been blocked. At present, there are nearly 70 Ugandan grain carriers waiting for inspection in the waters of Türkiye.
On July 22, 2022, Russia and Ukraine signed relevant agreements with Türkiye and the United Nations on the export of agricultural products from Black Sea ports in Istanbul, Türkiye. The agreement is valid for 120 days. The agreement was extended twice in November last year and March this year. When discussing the renewal in March, the Russian side only agreed to a 60 day extension, and the agreement expired on May 18th.
