Zelensky: Grain corridor won’t be safe if UN limits itself to statements

He said this during a joint press conference with Prime Minister of Ireland Leo Varadkar in Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

The Head of State noted that Ukraine had the grain export agreement with Türkiye and the UN and it is valid, while Russia violated its agreements with the UN and Türkiye.

"The [grain] corridor must be safe. In fact, knowing Russia, it will not be safe unless the UN starts working at the level of the Secretary-General very clearly and very firmly. In addition to his words, which were powerful enough, practical actions are needed. We haven't seen this yet," Zelensky said.

As noted, Ukraine works with Türkiye at different levels and promised to have complete information regarding the vision for the continued functioning of the corridor in the near future.

"With the President of Türkiye, we can talk about how we will act with him, how we can ensure security in this corridor. There are different aspects here. We raised issues regarding individual convoys – they need to be discussed not only with Türkiye but also with our other partners. I am going to discuss it," the President added.

The President is also waiting for a response from the Ukrainian military regarding the security situation in order to continue the operation of the grain initiative.

"UN, Türkiye, and the military – everyone can say that no one gives 100% guarantees. But this is a very easy position. For Ukraine as a state, this is not a position that we are ready to accept because we need the corridor to function. And we have every right to do so," Zelensky emphasized.

In addition, he said that private companies that rent ships and are traders of agricultural products had long been addressing and declaring their readiness to take risks and go along the corridor.

The Head of State said that he was waiting for a suitable plan from the military and the Ministry of Infrastructure how it can be done.

As reported, on July 17, Russia announced the termination of the grain deal which was concluded on July 22, 2022 in Istanbul for 120 days and was extended several times.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the grain initiative could operate without the participation of the Russian Federation, and with its actions to withdraw from the grain agreement, Russia was disrupting its own agreements with Türkiye and the UN.