U.N. World Food Programme optimistic on Ukraine grain export deal

• The World Food Programme (WFP) is optimistic about an agreement to reopen Ukrainian ports for grain exports.
• Russia, Ukraine, the United Nations, and Turkey signed an agreement on Friday to allow ships to enter and exit three Ukrainian Black Sea ports that have been closed by Russia.

LONDON, 25 JULY (Reuters) – The World Food Programme (WFP) expressed optimism about a United Nations-brokered agreement to reopen Ukrainian ports for grain exports, but warned that even if fully implemented, the agreement will not solve the global food crisis.

Russia, Ukraine, the United Nations, and Turkey signed an agreement on Friday to allow ships to enter and exit three Ukrainian Black Sea ports that have been closed by Russia since Moscow’s Feb. 24 invasion.
Ukraine and Russia are major grain exporters, and the port blockade has stranded tens of millions of tonnes of grain. Along with Western sanctions against Russia, it has caused a spike in energy and food prices, sparking protests in developing countries that rely on Black Sea grains.

The World Food Programme (WFP) has had to reduce aid this year in key hunger hotspots such as Yemen and South Sudan due to global inflation and critical funding gaps, both of which have been exacerbated by the Ukraine conflict.
“We believe the agreement will result in lower global food prices. Countries reliant on grain supplies from the Black Sea would most likely be the first to benefit “Reuters was told by a WFP spokesperson.

She added, however, that the current global food crisis is more than just a price crisis, and that man-made conflict, climate shocks, and the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to exacerbate global food insecurity even if the deal reached on Friday holds.
Russian missiles hit Ukraine’s southern port of Odesa on Saturday, raising fears that the agreement could be jeopardised just one day after it was signed, though the Kremlin dismissed this, claiming that the strike only targeted military infrastructure.

On Monday, a senior Ukrainian government official said he hoped the first grain shipment from Ukraine would leave Chornomorsk this week, with shipments from other ports mentioned in the agreement following in two weeks.

Prior to the conflict, the WFP purchased more than half of its wheat from Ukraine. According to the agency, which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020, 47 million people will face “acute hunger” this year as a result of the current global food crisis.

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