21 minutes agoUkraine finalising deal to provide grain ships
Periskopi(3 years ago)
(3 years ago)Ukraine is finalising an agreement with global security companies to cover ships with grain travelling straight and from its Black Sea ports, the Financial Times reported on August 21st, citing Ukraine's deputy economy minister, Oleksandre Gruban. Greban told the American medium that the deal was “ [...]
The Greban told the American media that the agreement was actively discussed “between the relevant ministries, as well as local banks and international insurance groups, including London's Lloyd Gardens, England.
During August, Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, warned that Ukraine would fight Russia's attacks on the Black Sea in order to import and export grain and other goods through its waters.
Zelensky's statement, on August 8th, came days after Ukrainian seamen, filled with explosives, damaged a Russian warship near a Russian port, and also hit a Russian oil tank.
Tensions in and around the Black Sea were escalating in July, when Russia withdrew from an agreement that enabled safe export of cereals from Ukrainian ports. Russia has repeatedly hit its ports and grain silos with fear and rockets.
Russia withdrew from the deal, mediated by Turkey and the United Nations, after saying its demands have not been met.
United Nations Organisation Secretary General Antonio Guterres proposed last month to Russian President Vladimir Putin to extend the deal in exchange for linking a branch of Russia's agricultural bank to the SW international payment system IFT, Reuters news agency reported.
Russia blocked Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea at the start of its invasion in February 2022.
This blockade was making Ukraine economically narrow, as its prewar economy depended almost entirely on exports, steel, and the most exported grain. / REL
