Black Sea grain deal inspections paused over dispute: UN Spokesperson
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The parties to the Black Sea grain deal failed to reach an agreement, which prevented the United Nations from conducting inspections regarding the accord.
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Cargo ships anchored in the Marmara Sea await to cross the Bosphorus Straits in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, November 1, 2022 (AP)
Inspections of the grain deal center have been paused for today with plans to resume tomorrow, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday, calling on all parties to the deal to fulfill their responsibilities.
"The Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) has not been able to conduct inspections today as the parties needed more time to reach an agreement on operational priorities," the statement said.
"Following intensive discussions within the JCC, supported by the United Nations and Türkiye, routine inspections are planned to resume tomorrow, Wednesday, 12 April," it added.
The UN urged all those involved to "meet their responsibilities" in order to ensure that vessels continue to move smoothly and safely in the interest of global food security.
Furthermore, it revealed that there are currently 50 vessels waiting to move to Ukrainian ports.
Russia, Ukraine, and Turkey signed an UN-brokered agreement on July 22 to establish a humanitarian maritime corridor for ships transporting food and fertilizers from Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which was called the Black Sea Grain Initiative and is generally known as the Grain Deal.
Read more: World needs Russia grain regardless of states' attitude to Moscow: WFP
The deal was extended on March 18 for a period of 60 days instead of the 120-day period originally specified in the agreement.
Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia listed in a letter addressed to UN Under-Secretary-General Martin Griffiths and UNCTAD Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan, all the conditions required for Moscow's approval of a further extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI) after 60 days and urged on the parties to abide by the regulations specified in the MoU signed between Russia and the UN.
The letter further noted that Russia was not opposed to the extension of the grain deal for 60 days until May 18.
Read more: UN focused on removing obstacles to grain deal payments: Spokesperson
Additionally, Nebenzya highlighted that the poorest countries received only about 3% of food supplies as part of the grain deal.
"We and many others have a lot of questions about the implementation of the so-called grain initiative, which is designed to facilitate the export of grain from Ukrainian ports," the diplomat said last month at a UN Security Council meeting on Friday.
"The main one is why it suddenly turned from a humanitarian into a commercial one? After all, statistics clearly indicate this," the Russian official added.
"Its influence on food prices in the world is highly debatable. Meanwhile, the poorest countries received not 66% or 65% of supplies, as they said today here in this hall, but only about 3%," he noted.
In response, Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov claimed that "Russia's position to extend the deal only for 60 (days) contradicts the document signed by Turkey & the UN."
"We're waiting for the official position of (the UN and Turkey) as the guarantors of the initiative," Kubrakov said on Twitter.
