Ukraine and Russia have signed "Mirror" agreements that will allow Kyiv to resume cereal exports through the Black Sea.
The global shortage of Ukrainian cereals since the February 24 invasion of Russia has left millions of people in danger of hunger.
However, Kyiv refused to sign a direct agreement with Moscow and warned that "provocations" will come up against "an immediate military response".
The two parties both attended the signature ceremony in Istanbul, but did not stay at the same table. Russian Minister of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, first signed the Moscow Agreement, followed by the Ukrainian Minister of Infrastructure Oleksandr Kubrakov signing the identical Kyiv agreement.
The agreement - which took two months to reach - should last 120 days, with a coordination and surveillance center which will be created in Istanbul, endowed with officials of the UN, the Turks, Russians and Ukrainians. It can be renewed if the two parties agree.
Ukraine's grain blockade has caused a global food crisis with wheat products like bread and pasta becoming more expensive, and cooking oils and fertilizers also increasing the price.
Mr. Shoigu told a press conference that the agreement could allow "the solutions to start this process in the coming days".
"I speak not only of the start of the export of agricultural products from Ukrainian ports, but also to work clearly in this direction on the export of agricultural products and fertilizers of the Russian ports," he added.
According to diplomats, under the terms of the agreement:
Russia will not target ports while shipments are in transit
Ukrainian ships will guide cargo cargo cargoes through waters that have been extracted
Turkey - supported by the United Nations - will inspect the ships, to appease Russian fears of the smuggling of arms
Russian cereal and fertilizer exports via the Black Sea will be facilitated.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told the BBC Orla Guerin that it was probably the most important thing he had done in his time at the head of the international body.
"Today, there is a beacon on the Black Sea," he told the public gathered in Istanbul. "A headlight of hope ... Possibility ... and relief in a world that needs more than ever."
The bottlenecks on the roads to export the Ukrainian grain
Images provide signs of Russian cereal flight
How much cereals is stuck in Ukraine?
However, there was still skepticism on the Ukrainian side before signing.
A deputy for Odesa, the center of the cereal blockade of Russia in Ukraine, said that he still did not trust the Kremlin due to past behavior. Oleksiy Goncarenko told BBC World News "We do not believe that the Russians" - adding that Russia would only sign an agreement if they thought there was no other option.
Mr. Guterres also admitted to the BBC that the UN had no way to punish Russia if it sold the agreement - but added that it would be "an absolutely unacceptable scandal and the whole international community would react very strongly ".
But Mr. Shoigu assured journalists that Russia had "assured the obligations" under the agreement, and they "would not take advantage of the fact that the ports will be erased and open".
Russia has always denied the blocking of Ukraine ports - it criticizes Ukraine for sea mines and Western sanctions to slow down Russia's own exports.
In an article intended for newspapers in Africa, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrov, blamed the West and Ukraine for allegations "absolutely baseless" that Russia exported hunger. He praised the "balanced position of Africans concerning what is happening in Ukraine and around".
Ukraine, however, says that the Russian navy prevents the expedition of cereals and other exports and accuses Russian occupation forces of stealing cereals on Ukrainian farms.
But in the middle of skepticism, there are positive signs: the prospect of unlocking more than 20 million tonnes of Ukrainian cereals led to a drop of 2%
blogpay
Total Comments: 0