Belarus agrees to transit of Ukrainian grain — UN
Harvesting in Kyiv region, beginning of August 2022 (Photo:REUTERS/Viacheslav Ratynskyi)
The United Nations has said that Belarus agreed to the transit of Ukrainian grain without any prior conditions, which will allow Ukraine to deliver it to Lithuanian ports, Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesman for the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, announced in a statement on Dec. 9.
Guterres met with Deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus Yury Ambrazevich in New York City on Dec. 9. The latter said that Minsk "will agree to the transit of Ukrainian grain without any preconditions."
Ambrazevich also reiterated the request of the Belarusian government to be able to export fertilizers that fall under Western sanctions.
As of Dec. 5, Ukraine had exported over 13 million tonnes of grain under the so called Grain Initiative.
On July 22, Ukraine, Turkey, and the UN signed an agreement in to unblock the Ukrainian ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk and Pivdennyi for the export of Ukrainian grain. Russia also signed a mirror agreement with Turkey and the UN.
To implement the agreement, a coordination center was set up in Turkey, and inspection teams from all parties are checking cargo and personnel, in particular for weapons.
Control over the ports remains with the Ukrainian side; no vessels other than those exporting grain and related products can enter Ukrainian ports.
On Nov. 17, Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov announced that the grain deal had been extended for 120 days.
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