Thirty-nine general cargo vessels loaded with over 821,000 tonnes of food products left Ukrainian ports under the Istanbul grain deal since August 1, Col. Gen. Mikhail Mizintsev, the head of the Russian National Defense Control Center, said on Friday.
"Under the implementation of the initiative on the safe transportation of grain and food products from Ukrainian ports, 39 dry cargo ships (including 19 ships previously blocked in the ports) were able to leave Ukrainian ports since August 1, 2022, and 821,547 tonnes of foodstuffs were exported," Mizintsev, who also leads Russia's humanitarian response coordination headquarters, told a briefing.
The ships have transported 570,210 tonnes of corn, 28,850 tonnes of sunflower oil, 50,301 tonnes of flour, 17,000 tonnes of soybeans, 90,172 tons of wheat, 2,914 tons of sunflower seeds, 18,500 tons of compound animal feeding stuff, 14,000 tons of sugar beet, and 29,600 tonnes of rape plant, according to the military official.
On July 22, Russia, Ukraine, and Turkey signed an UN-brokered initiative to provide a humanitarian maritime corridor for ships to carry food and fertilizers from the Black Sea ports. Three key Ukrainian ports — Odessa, Chornomorsk, and Yuzhne — were unblocked to resume exports. A joint coordination center was set up to monitor the implementation of the initiative, including ensuring that cargo ships do not carry unauthorized goods or personnel. The series of documents also lifted restrictions on supplies of Russian products for export and provided for Moscow's assistance in exporting Ukrainian grain.
