First UN ship to dock in Ukraine on Friday to collect grain

A first vessel chartered by the United Nations to transport Ukrainian grain to support its humanitarian aid operations around the world is due to dock in Ukraine on Friday, the World Food Program (WFP) said.

The MV Brave Commander, which left Istanbul on Wednesday, is due to arrive in Youzhne, east of Odessa, on the shores of the Black Sea, to then pick up the cereals purchased by the WFP. “ This is the first delivery of humanitarian food aid under the Black Sea Grain Initiativesaid a WFP spokesman, Tomson Phiri, during a regular press briefing in Geneva.

30,000 tons of Ukrainian wheat bought by the Pam

July 22, Ukraine and Russia signed in Istanbul, via Turkish mediation and under the aegis of the UN, agreements for four months on the export of Ukrainian cereals to the Black Sea, blocked because of the armed conflict between the two countries. In accordance with these agreements, a Joint Coordination Center (JCC), responsible for controlling Ukrainian grain exports via the Black Sea, has been set up in Istanbul. On August 10, a first commercial cargo of Ukrainian grain docked at the port of Mersin, Turkey. But no UN humanitarian cargo has so far left Ukraine. The WFP has so far purchased 30,000 tons of Ukrainian wheat, and the MV Brave Commander has a capacity of 23,000 tons. “The rest will soon be loaded and shipped on another ship“, explained Tomson Phiri. WFP hopes that there will be regular humanitarian shipments thereafter. The organization did not indicate the date on which the MV Brave Commander will leave Ukraine, nor its destination.

“Loading and moving ships (…) in the context of the current conflict is a complex operation“said Tomson Phiri. “Getting Ukrainian grain to WFP humanitarian operations in places like Ethiopia, Somalia and Yemen will benefit both the Ukrainian economy and famine-threatened populations in the hardest-hit parts of the world. by the global food crisis“, he also noted. Ukraine and Russia are among the world’s largest grain exporters, and the war has led to skyrocketing grain prices. According to the WFP, a record 345 million people in 82 countries now face acute food insecurity, while up to 50 million people in 45 countries are at risk of starvation without humanitarian assistance.