The Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) was inaugurated in Istanbul on 27 July following the Black Sea Grain Initiative launched by Russian Federation, Türkiye, Ukraine and the United Nations.
From 1 to 15 August, the JCC has authorized a total of 36 movements of vessels (21 outbound and 15 inbound) through the maritime humanitarian corridor in the Black Sea to facilitate the safe exports of grain, foodstuffs and fertilizer, including ammonia, from Ukrainian ports.
During this period, 21 vessels have been authorized to move from the Ukrainian ports of Odesa (11), Chornomorsk (6) and /Pivdennyi (4) under the Initiative. Those vessels are carrying a total of 563,317 metric tons (MT) of grain and other foodstuffs.
Routes of commercial vessels and cargo ownership are determined through commercial activity and they may change en route. The food en route to Djibouti is 23,000 MT of wheat purchased by the World Food Programme (WFP) to contribute to the drought response in Ethiopia as part of the WFP’s humanitarian operations.
From 1-15 August, the JCC has conducted a total of 27 inspections through its joint inspection teams on inbound and outbound vessels. All ships inspected so far were cleared.
As part of its responsibilities, the JCC has been closely monitoring the inbound and outbound movement of vessels through the maritime humanitarian corridor in the Black Sea. It has so far observed on two occasions vessels deviating from the corridor and it has responded appropriately by contacting captains and advising them to follow the coordinates.
The JCC is also providing pre-transit briefs to inbound masters during the inspection process in Istanbul. The JCC continues to assess and review the procedures put in place to ensure the safe passage of vessels through the maritime humanitarian corridor.
