The first grainshipto leave a Ukrainian port in wartime passed inspection and was heading through the Bosphorus on Wednesday for a delivery that foreign powers hope will be the first of many to help ease a global food crisis.
The Razoni left Odesa on the Black Sea early on Monday carrying 26,527 tonnes of corn to Lebanon and anchored at the entrance of the Bosphorus Strait on Tuesday night.
Theshipment was made possible after Turkey and the United Nations brokered a grain and fertilizer export agreement between Moscow and Kyiv last month – a rare diplomatic breakthrough in a drawn-out war of attrition.
Theshipentered the Bosphorus Strait around 1130 GMT, following the completion of the inspection by Russian, Ukrainian, Turkish and U.N. personnel working at a Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) in nearby Istanbul.
Ukraine said it had 17 more vessels loaded with agricultural products awaiting approval to set sail.
A view of the Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship Razoni, carrying Ukrainian grain, during an inspection by Joint Coordination Centre officials in the Black Sea off Kilyos, near Istanbul, Turkey August 3, 2022. /Umit Bektas
Ukraine’s ambassador to Lebanon, Ihor Ostash, said the Razoni was expected to arrive in Tripoli port in four to five days.
THREESHIPS A DAY
Inspection personnel boarded the Razoni after two boats ferried them from a small fishing port at Istanbul’s Rumeli Feneri to theship, which was circled by two coast guard boats while a helicopter flew over.
The JCC said the clearing of theshipafter a three-hour inspection concluded the initial “proof of concept” operation.
A military officer stands at a stage after a news conference at The Joint Coordination Centre hours after the first ship to carry Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea, since Russia invaded Ukraine five months ago, left the port of Odesa for Lebanon in Istanbul, Turkey, August 2, 2022. /Umit Bektas
The inspection team gained valuable information from the crew about the Razoni’s journey, which will be used to finetune procedures to continue the safe passage of commercial vessels under the deal, it added.
The Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship Razoni, carrying Ukrainian grain, is seen in the Black Sea off Kilyos, near Istanbul, Turkey August 3, 2022. /Mehmet Emin Caliskan
The U.N.-brokered deal relaunched the export of grains from one of the world’s top producers after they were stalled for more than five months after Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion. The agreement aims to help ease shortages and rising prices.
After the first successful departure, a senior Turkish official, who requested anonymity, said threeships may leave the three Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea every day, instead of the previously planned one.
“Just recently, thanks to the @IMOHQ in partnership with Turkey, we had the first ship with the delivery of grain, but it’s still nothing,” said Volodymr Zelenskiy
— John ? Konrad V (@johnkonrad) August 3, 2022
The 120-day deal will be extended for a month at a time if exports are not completed due to the weather or problems with inspections, the official said, adding that the initial period appeared sufficient for Ukrainian silos to be emptied.
U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that more outbound movement was being planned from Ukraine on Wednesday, adding that about 27ships were covered by the export deal.
(Additional reporting by Bulent Usta, Ali Kucukgocmen, Daren Butler in Istanbul, Tom Balmforth in Kyiv, Timour Azhari in Baabda; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Nick Macfie)
