Ukraine Restores Black Sea Grain Shipping Corridor Amid Russia’s Attack
In the midst of Russia’s ongoing attack on Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced on Saturday that two more ships had successfully passed through a “temporary” Black Sea shipping corridor. This corridor was established since Russia’s withdrawal from a U.N.-backed grain export deal in July.
Zelenskiy shared the news on social media platform X, stating, “Two ships have successfully passed through our temporary ‘grain corridor’.” However, he did not provide details about the vessels involved or the exact timing of their passage. Ukrainian officials had previously confirmed on Friday that two vessels had cleared the corridor, bringing the total number of ships to have used it to four.
The Ukrainian president expressed his belief that Ukraine is “restoring true freedom of navigation in the Black Sea” and emphasized that determination is required for achieving this freedom.
According to a Ukrainian deputy prime minister, the two vessels that recently passed through the corridor originated from the port of Pivdenny. One of the vessels was flying the Liberian flag, while the other was registered in the Marshall Islands. These ships were transporting pig iron and iron concentrate.
Since the invasion in February 2022, Russia has blockaded Ukrainian ports and has threatened to treat all vessels as potential military targets after pulling out of the U.N.-backed grain export deal.
In response to the blockade, Ukraine established a “humanitarian corridor” along the western Black Sea coast near Romania and Bulgaria.
The grain export deal had been crucial for Ukraine, a major agricultural exporter, allowing them to ship tens of millions of metric tons of produce to other countries during the Russian invasion.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to meet with his Turkish counterpart, Tayyip Erdogan, on Monday in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. The meeting aims to revive the grain export deal, and both Turkey and the United Nations are actively involved in the negotiations.
Russia had quit the deal in July, citing obstacles to its own food and fertilizer exports and expressing dissatisfaction with the distribution of Ukrainian grain to countries in need.
As the conflict continues, Ukraine is persistently seeking ways to ensure the uninterrupted export of their agricultural products and regain control over the Black Sea shipping routes.
Reporting by Ron Popeski; editing by Jonathan Oatis