UNITED NATIONS, May 17 (APP):UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Wednesday welcomed Russia’s decision to extend the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which allows for the safe export , via the Black Sea, of millions of tonnes Ukrainian grain.
“We have some positive and significant developments: confirmation by the Russian Federation to continue its participation in the Black Sea Initiative for another 60 days. I welcome this decision,” the UN chief told reporters at UN Headquarters in New York.
The two-month extension, negotiated by the United Nations and Turkey, was announced a day before the previous deal was due to expire. There had been concerns that Russia could pull out of the pact.
It was first agreed last July following fears of global food shortages as a result of the war in Ukraine.
The secretary-general said Moscow’s decision to continue its involvement in the Initiative also aims to ensure the flow of food and fertilizer from Russia, through a Memorandum of Understanding.
Guterres said the continuation was “good news for the world” although outstanding issues remained to be resolved.
“But representatives of Russia, Ukraine, Turkiye and the United Nations will keep discussing them – I hope we will reach a comprehensive agreement to improve, expand and extend the Initiative – as I proposed in a recent letter to the presidents of the three countries.”
Guterres conveyed his appreciation to all the parties involved in the negotiations for continuing the deal, for proceeding “in a spirit of constructive engagement”.
He thanked President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish Government for their efforts, “working in permanent coordination with the United Nations”.
He said both the Initiative and the Memorandum of Understanding between the UN and Russia over fertilizer and foods mattered for global food security.
“Ukrainian and Russian products feed the world”, with vital supplies reaching some of the world’s most vulnerable thanks to the deal, “including 30,000 tons of wheat that just left Ukraine aboard a WFP-chartered ship to feed hungry people in Sudan,” the UN chief said.
“They matter because we are still in the throes of a record-breaking cost-of-living crisis. Over the last year, markets have stabilized, volatility has been reduced and we have seen global food prices fall by 20 per cent.”
He said the agreements mattered because the demonstrated that “even in the darkest hours, there is always a beacon of hope and an opportunity to find solutions that benefit everyone.”
The UN chief added that he hoped exports of food and fertilizer from both Ukraine and Russia, would reach global supply chains “safely and predictably”, as envisaged by all participants.
The UN was fully committed to support both agreements, he added.
