Russia and Ukraine signed separate deals with the United Nations and Turkey on Friday to export grain from Black Sea ports, easing a wartime standoff that has left millions at risk of hunger.
The deal, which is slated to be implemented in the next several weeks, is significant for global food supplies. It is also the first major deal signed between the two countries since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February.
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The accord, which leaders signed at separate tables in Istanbul, was praised by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as a “beacon of hope” for easing the global food crisis.
Leaders said the agreement will clear the way to export “significant” volumes of food through three Ukrainian exports: Odesa, Chernomorsk, and Yuzhny, and will also ease shipments of Russian grain and fertilizer.
It is “a beacon of hope [and] possibility … and relief in a world that needs it more than ever,” Guterres added of the deal.
The details of the agreement were not immediately known, though diplomats have said it is expected to allow Ukrainian vessels to guide grain ships through mined port waters and would include a local truce with Russia so it does not attack the shipments in transport.
It is also expected to include a provision allowing Turkey, with the U.N.’s backing, to inspect the ships to assuage Russian concerns of weapons shipments, according to Reuters.
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“We are hopeful, though realistic, about the prospects for reopening Ukraine’s agricultural exports given how Russia has been blocking exports throughout the war, exacerbating global food insecurity,” a White House national security spokesperson said prior to Friday’s deal signing.
“Success in ending Russia’s blockade will, of course, depend not only on Russia agreeing to a deal, but on Russia actually implementing it.”
