Ukraine Reportedly Strikes Deal With Russia To Resume Grain Exports Amid Fears Of Food Crisis

Topline

Ukrainian officials say they have reached a deal with Russia, Turkey and the United Nations Friday to lift a Russian naval blockade, allowing millions of tons of stockpiled Ukrainian grain to be exported, lifting fears of a food crisis as the war wages on.

Key Facts

The deal, the first since the war began nearly five months ago, includes a Russian truce on Ukrainian ships exiting Black Sea ports, allows Ukrainian vessels to guide grain ships out of those ports, and calls on Turkey to inspect those ships, which Russia worries could be used to smuggle arms, diplomats told the BBC.

Nearly 25 million tons of grain has been trapped inside Ukraine, the world’s fifth biggest wheat exporter, since Russia invaded on February 24, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Russia’s blockade will spark famine and mass migration.

The deal comes amid repeated Russian air strikes on civilian and residential areas, as President Vladimir Putin focuses his war efforts along the Black Sea and the eastern provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk, where the roughly 350,000 remaining residents have been told to evacuate.

Big Number

6 million tons. That’s how much grain Ukraine exported, on average, each month before Russia invaded the country in February, according to data from the Ukrainian Grain Association. Since then, exports plummeted, to roughly 300,000 tons in March, before they slowly rebounded, to 1 million in April and 1.7 million in May.

Key Background

Ukraine does not have the capacity to store the surpluses of grain it’s amassed as Russia’s invasion wages on, according to the Ukrainian Grain Association, which estimated last month the total surplus of grain and oilseeds could reach 55 million to 60 million tons combined. Roughly 22% of Ukraine’s cropland is now under Russian control, according to the Moscow Times, which cited satellite imagery. On top of that, reports emerged in June of Russia stealing hundreds of thousands of tons of Ukrainian grain to sell worldwide — accusations that were supported by United Kingdom Food Minister Victoria Prentis and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied the reports, even though satellite imagery shared by CNN appears to show Russian ships loading stolen grain in Crimea. Talks between Turkey and the UN for Russian protections for Ukrainian ships began two months ago, and resumed in Istanbul last week — and they looked promising. Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba told Spanish outlet El Pais last week they are “two steps away” from an agreement to overcome Russia’s naval blockade.

Crucial Quote

“Tomorrow, we will take the first step towards the solution of the food crisis affecting the whole world,” Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu tweeted Thursday.

Further Reading

Ukraine Minister Pleads For Security To Export Grain Amid Concerns Of Food Crisis (Forbes)

Ukraine Says May Grain Exports Down More Than 60% Compared To 2021 In Latest Alarming Sign Of International Food Crisis (Forbes)

What We Know About Where Russia’s ‘Stolen’ Grain Is Going (Forbes)