Grain deal under threat: Russia again blocks ships inspection in Bosphorus Strait

This was reported by the Turkish Defense Ministry.

"At the invitation of the Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar, the Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for Restoration and Minister of Infrastructure Oleksandr Kubrakov will arrive in Turkey tomorrow on a visit," the statement said.

The ministers will meet in the city of Kayseri. Together they will discuss bilateral issues, including the grain initiative.

Earlier the Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine reported that the grain initiative is under threat of shutdown after Russia blocked ship inspections.

The ministry notes that since April 10, Russia has unilaterally suspended the registration of ships from Ukrainian ports at the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) in Istanbul to form an inspection plan. Russia began to form its own inspection plan, selecting vessels from the queue at its discretion. This, according to the ministry, is completely contrary to the terms of the grain deal and is unacceptable for Ukraine.

"As a result, for the second time in 9 months of operation of the Grain Initiative, an inspection plan has not been drawn up, and not a single vessel has been inspected. This threatens the functioning of the Black Sea Grain Initiative," the statement said.

The Ministry reminded that since November 2022, Russians have been sabotaging and delaying inspections under various pretexts. This has already led to a reduction in exports of Ukrainian agricultural products to the world market by 15 to 18 million tons.

Also, since April 2023, Russian representatives of the JCC have been trying to interfere in the activities of Ukrainian ports and exporters by imposing their own criteria for determining the specific vessels that will participate in the Grain Initiative. Thus, on April 14, they began to refuse to register three vessels that were already waiting for cargo in the Ukrainian port of Pivdennyi without any explanation. Two of these vessels are headed to China.

The ministry notes that in this way Russia is trying to establish control over the number of ships in the fleet and the directions of its work. This is a violation of international norms and regulations.

"This is another Russia's attempt to dictate its policies to the world, endanger food security, and use food as a weapon. Ukraine categorically rejects Russia’s latest demands and opposes its interference in the operation of Ukrainian ports. We hope that the UN partners and Turkey can still ensure that all parties in the JCC comply with the procedures that have worked for 9 months," the ministry summarized.

• On November 8, 2022, Ukraine reported that the "grain corridor" was not working at full capacity due to the fact that Russian inspectors were slow to check grain trucks in the corridor.

• As of January 9, 2023, 98 ships with agricultural products from Ukraine were waiting in line for inspection in the Bosphorus because of Russians.

• On January 19, it was reported that as a result of Russian actions in the Bosphorus, which led to a queue of more than 100 ships, the world was losing millions of tons of Ukrainian food every month. Subsequently, Ukraine called on the international community to help restore the full operation of the "grain corridor," which Russia has used as a tool of manipulation and pressure.

• On January 26, it was reported that in January the number of ships leaving Ukrainian ports was 2.7, with 2-3 ships per day, one of the lowest figures.

• As of March 27, the Russian officials continue to delay inspections of ships under the grain initiative in Turkish territorial waters. A total of 94 vessels are waiting to enter and exit.