The Lebanese Minister of Public Works and Transport, Ali Hamie, said the Razoni ship, which is loaded with corn and was heading to Lebanon, has started changing its course, knowing that it is the first ship to leave the Ukrainian port of Odessa in accordance with the UN-brokered grain agreement.

Hamie wrote on his Twitter account: "The ship Razoni (sl) that set sail from the port of Odessa, loaded with corn, which was supposed - according to circulations - to be heading to the port of Tripoli in #Lebanon... and just before arriving at its initially announced destination, has changed its course! The attached data indicates that it is waiting for a new command about its new destination."

الباخرة Razoni (sl) التي انطلقت من ميناء أوديسا ، والمحملة بالذرة ، والتي كان يفترض- وبحسب ما أشيع -بأن تكون وجهتها #مرفأ_طرابلس في #لبنان .. وقبل وصولها إلى وجهتها المعلنة بداية ، تغيّر مسارها !! وتشير البيانات المرفقة بأنها تنتظر أمراً جديداً حول تحديد وجهتها الجديدة ! ؟ pic.twitter.com/p2iHrvdoCl

— Ali Hamie | علي حمية (@alihamie_lb) August 7, 2022

On August 3, the first grain ship to leave a Ukrainian port during the war crossed through the Bosphorus Strait en route to Lebanon for a delivery that international powers hope would be the first of many to help alleviate a worldwide food crisis.

The Razoni set sail from Odessa on the Black Sea early on August 1, carrying 26,527 tons of grain, and arrived at the Bosphorus Strait on the night of August 2.

The UN-mediated initiative for food security

Known as the Black Sea grain initiative, mediated by the UN and signed by Ukraine, Russia, and Turkey on July 22, formed the Joint Coordination Center and intended to ensure that exports of food and fertilizer reach those in need from three key Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea being Odessa, Chornomorsk, and Yuzhny. 

The center will audit the implementation of the Black Sea grain initiative to establish a humanitarian maritime corridor for shipping exports and will perform inspections of the cargo vessels to guarantee that they do not harbor unauthorized goods or personnel.

Under the agreement’s conditions, the route of the cargo carriers is as follows: the carriers will be led by Ukrainian vessels into international waters of the Black Sea, steering away from mined areas, and will thus carry onwards toward the Bosphorus Strait along an established corridor.

Read more: Turkey expects daily departures from Ukraine following first sail