Turkey proposes options to transfer Russian grain to poor countries
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Ankara warned participants in the grain deal that they will be impacted if the agreement is not extended, and that the food market will be destabilized.
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A harvester collects wheat in Rostov-on-Don region Southern Russia on Wednesday, July 6, 2022. (AP)
Turkey repeatedly informed Western countries that impoverished countries are not receiving a fair share of food commodities specified under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, also known as the grain deal, and laid out several plans that would help ensure the delivery of Russian agriproducts to these countries, a source informed on the matter told Sputnik on Tuesday.
"Yes, the statistics show that this is true [countries in need are supplied less grain than prescribed under the deal]. This issue has been repeatedly raised officially by Ankara, including by the president [Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan] in contacts with Western partners. It has been openly voiced. This fact was stated in phone talks between the Turkish president and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Ankara offered different options for processing and delivering Russian products to countries in need," the source said.
If Russia decides to withdraw from the deal, the impact will be on all participants and will eventually destabilize the whole market.
"No, I am unable to provide you with the exact figures, as we have not conducted such calculations yet, but analysts have determined the possible risks. I would say that there is a very clear understanding that such an outcome will in one way or another affect all participants of the market, up to its destabilization. No one wants this, and we continue our efforts in this context."
Russia, Ukraine, and Turkey signed an UN-brokered agreement on July 22, 2022 to establish a humanitarian maritime corridor for ships transporting food and fertilizers from Ukrainian Black Sea ports.
The grain export deal has helped ease the global food crisis triggered by the war in Ukraine and the Western sanctions against Russia.
Deal set to expire on July 17
According to the United Nations, more than 24.1 million tonnes of grain have been exported under the agreement until March. But the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) revealed in October 2022 that only a quarter of the grain exported under the BSGI is going to low-income countries.
Most of the grain leaving Ukraine's ports is heading to the European Union instead of developing countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in September 2022, as the world's poorest nations bear the brunt of the food crisis most.
Putin has since offered to deliver to poor African countries Russian grain free of charge.
On May 17, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that the deal has been extended for an additional two months. But the future of the grain deal, which is set to expire on July 17, remains uncertain.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin warned earlier that July 18 may potentially be the last day of the grain deal initiative, joining other voices of top Russian diplomats making the same statements.
Stakeholders are growing more concerned as the due date closes in that it will not be renewed.
A source familiar with the matter informed Sputnik last week that the current situation offers little optimism for a prospective extension. However, anticipated discussions between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are viewed as the sole glimmer of hope.
Moscow is objecting the lack of fullfilment of several terms in the signed memorandum, including the reconnection of the Russian Agricultural Bank to SWIFT and the resumption of fertilizer transit through the Tolyatti-Odesa ammonia pipeline.
