Ukraine’s ODESA: According to a UN official, the United Nations-chartered ship MV Brave Commander will depart Ukraine for Africa in the coming days after carrying more than 23,0000 tons of wheat in the Ukrainian port of Pivdennyi.
The ship, which arrived at a port near Odesa in late July, will sail to Ethiopia along a grain corridor via the Black Sea negotiated by the United Nations and Turkey.
It will be the first humanitarian food aid cargo heading for Africa under the Black Sea Grain Initiative since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
The shipment was paid for through donations from the UN World Food Programme, the US Agency for International Development, and a number of private contributors.
Following the agreement with Russia to allow the restart of grain shipments from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, which had been halted for five months due to the fighting, a total of 16 ships have already left the country.
The agreement was made last month amid fears that the loss of Ukrainian grain supply will result in catastrophic food shortages and potentially famine outbreaks in areas of the world.
Ukraine has 20 million tons of grain left over from last year’s crop, and the wheat harvest for this year is also expected to be 20 million tons.
So far, the majority of the cargoes under the agreement have carried grain for animal feed or fuel.
As part of the UN agreement, all ships are examined in Istanbul by the Joint Coordination Center, which is staffed by Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, and UN officials.
Source: Reuters
