Erdogan announces release of Ukrainian grain

Around 400 million people worldwide depend on food from Ukraine. Because of the Russian war of aggression, supplies are faltering, and experts are warning of new famines.

How bad is the food crisis?

The latest developments:

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Olexander Kubrakov are on their way to Turkey. This was reported by the Reuters news agency on Friday. Together with UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, they are due to sign an agreement on the export of wheat across the Black Sea this afternoon.
According to the Turkish government, after weeks of negotiations, an agreement has been reached on the export of millions of tons of Ukrainian grain across the Black Sea. The office of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that the agreement will be signed on Friday (July 22) in Istanbul. In addition to UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Erdogan, representatives of Russia and Ukraine would be present at the signing, it said. Details about the content of the agreement were not given.
According to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, a first breakthrough has been achieved in the dispute over grain exports from Ukraine. During the talks between representatives of the United Nations, Ukraine, Russia and Turkey in Istanbul, a "decisive step" towards a solution had been taken, Guterres told journalists in New York on Wednesday (July 13). Guterres initially did not share any details. But he said: "More technical work will be necessary for today's progress to materialize." However, he hopes that a final agreement can be reached next week.
According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba, the grain crisis may be nearing a solution. "We are two steps away from an agreement with Russia," Kuleba assured in an interview with the Spanish newspaper "El País". His country is “ready to export grain to the international market”. Representatives of Moscow, Kiev, Ankara and the United Nations will meet in Turkey on Wednesday (13 July) to resolve the dispute over grain exports from Ukraine. Russia is accused of blocking Ukrainian grain exports. Although the foreign minister was optimistic, he conceded that everything was not yet settled. «True, Russia is not interested in Ukraine exporting. They know that when we export, we also generate revenue in international markets and that makes us stronger."
Welthungerhilfe is observing an increasing number of countries that are no longer exporting food, making access to food even more difficult for billions of people. "More and more countries are saying: 'We're not letting anything out.' That leads to shortages, that drives up prices, and that's really, really bad for the poorest people in the world because they can no longer afford food." , said the Secretary General of the aid organization, Mathias Mogge, on Tuesday in the ZDF "Morgenmagazin". The world community must ensure that the markets remain open. Welthungerhilfe wanted to present its new annual report in the morning and give an outlook on the effects of the Ukraine war, the climate crisis, flight and displacement on hunger worldwide. According to the organization, the food situation in developing and emerging countries has "deteriorated dramatically" in recent months.
According to the Baywa conglomerate, the wheat harvest in Ukraine will be weaker than in previous years. 22.48 million tons of bread wheat are currently ripening there for the harvest, which is a decrease of 17 percent compared to the average for the past four years, said Baywa boss Klaus Josef Lutz on Thursday (June 30). The assessment is based on the latest satellite data. These showed "that a below-average harvest can no longer be avoided," he emphasized. The "Spiegel" had also reported on it. The reason for the expected decline is not just the war, but above all the drought, said Heike Bach, CEO of the Baywa subsidiary Vista. In addition, the transport is a problem, said Lutz: "Without opening the ports, the grain will not come out of the country."