Pope applauds Ukrainian grain deal as sign of hope for peace
By Devin Watkins
“I would like to welcome the departure from Ukraine's ports of the first ships loaded with grain.”
Pope Francis made that remark on Sunday while speaking at the noon-day Angelus prayer.
Four bulk carrier ships set sail from Ukrainian Black Sea ports on Sunday, after the first ships left the port city of Odessa early last week following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February.
The Pope said the deal charts the path forward toward peace.
End of blockade
Turkey and the United Nations brokered a deal in July between Russia and Ukraine to allow the export of Ukrainian foodstuffs through the Black Sea.
The deal ended a months-long blockade of Ukrainian ports, which had led to soaring grain prices around the globe.
The UN had warned of possible outbreaks of famine in various places due to the lack of Ukrainian grain shipments.
Before the war, Ukraine and Russia together made up nearly a third of global wheat exports.
Joint oversight efforts
A Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) has been set up in Istanbul to oversee the shipping of Ukrainian grain, and is staffed by Russian, Ukrainian, Turkish, and UN personnel.
The four bulk carriers which left port on Sunday were carrying nearly 170,000 tons of corn and other foodstuffs, according to Ukraine’s sea ports authority.
Saturday marked the first time a foreign-flagged ship arrived in Ukraine to be loaded with grain since the outbreak of the war in February.
Ukraine’s Infrastructure Minister said Sunday that the country hopes to soon be able to ship around 3 million tons of good each month.
"We are gradually moving on to larger volumes of work,” said Oleksandr Kubrakov on Facebook. “We plan to ensure the ability of the ports to handle at least 100 vessels per month in the near future.”
Thank you for reading our article. You can keep up-to-date by subscribing to our daily newsletter. Just click here
