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Implementation of Black Sea Grain Deal Renewed, Russian Defense Ministry Announces

Nov. 2, 2022 (EIRNS)—The Russian Defense Ministry, in a statement (in Russian) posted on its Telegram channel this morning, announced that Russia has renewed implementation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, negotiated with Ukraine last July, with Turkish and UN mediation. “With the help of the international organization and Turkey, the necessary written guarantees from Ukraine on the non-use of the humanitarian corridor and Ukrainian ports designated for the export of agricultural products, for military operations against the Russian Federation were obtained and submitted to the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) on 1 November 2022,” the Russian statement said, after an introductory paragraph citing the Oct. 29 attack on vessels of the Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol and Russia’s bringing it to the attention of the UN security Council.

“The Ukrainian side, in particular, officially assured that ‘the maritime humanitarian corridor will be used only in accordance with the provisions of the Black Sea Initiative and the related JCC regulation,’ ” the statement continued.

The statement concludes: “The Russian Federation believes that the guarantees received at this time are adequate and resumes implementation of the agreement—the Initiative for the Safe Transportation of Grain and Food from Ukrainian Ports (the Black Sea Initiative)—which had been halted following the terrorist attack in Sevastopol.”

The statement followed a round of diplomacy by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday, which included phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as well as continued discussions at the level of foreign and defense ministers. The Kremlin readout of the Erdogan-Putin phone call not only reported Putin’s stress on the Kiev regime providing guarantees not to use the humanitarian corridor for military operations, but also on the second part of the grain agreement, “on unblocking Russian agricultural produce and fertilizer exports to global markets.”

TASS cited UN coordinator at the Istanbul Joint Coordination Center Amir Abdullah saying yesterday that the UN expects that naval navigation via the grain corridor will resume on November 3. “Exports of grain and foodstuffs from #Ukraine need to continue. Although no movements of vessels are planned for 2 November under the #BlackSeaGrainInitiative, we expect loaded ships to sail on Thursday,” Nov. 3 he said on Twitter.

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