Russia blocks ship's inspections of "grain corridor" again
On April 17, 2023, Russia, for the second time, blocked inspections of ships in Turkish territorial waters heading through the "grain corridor".
The relevant statement was made by a press service of the Ministry of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure of Ukraine on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.
"Today, on April 17, the Russian side has blocked the ship's inspection in the territorial waters of Turkey for the second time," the statement said.
It is noted that since April 10, the Russian side at the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) in Istanbul has unilaterally suspended the registration of ships submitted by Ukrainian ports to form an inspection plan. Instead, the Russians form their own inspection plan, selecting ships from the queue at their discretion, which is entirely contrary to the terms of the initiative and unacceptable to Ukraine.
As a result, no inspection plan has been drawn up for the second time in the nine months of the Grain Initiative's operation, and no ship has been inspected. The Ministry emphasizes that this puts the functioning of the Grain Initiative at risk.
Since November 2022, the Russians have been sabotaging and delaying inspections for various reasons. This has already reduced the volume of Ukrainian agricultural exports to world markets by 15-18 million tons.
Since April 2023, Russian representatives of JCC have been trying to interfere with the activities of Ukrainian ports and exporters by imposing their own criteria for determining the specific vessels that will participate in the initiative. For example, since April 14, 2023, the Russians have refused to register three ships (2 of them are to deliver food to China). The cargo has already been waiting at the Pivdennyi port without any explanation.
The Ministry believes that in this way, the Russian side is trying to establish control over the number of loaded fleet and the directions of its work, which violates international norms and provisions of the "grain initiative".
"This is yet another attempt to dictate its policy to the world, to threaten food security and use food as a weapon. Ukraine strongly rejects the latest Russian demands and opposes interference in the activities of Ukrainian ports," the Ministry emphasizes.
The Ministry of Reconstruction hopes that UN partners and Turkey will be able to ensure that all parties in the JCC comply with the procedures that have been in place for nine months.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, on March 18, 2023, Ukraine, the United Nations and Turkey agreed to extend the "Initiative for the Safe Transportation of Agricultural Products through the Black Sea" for 120 days.
Photo: Ministry of Agrarian Policy