The agreement that unblocked the Ukrainian Black Sea ports should be extended for longer than only 60 days to ensure global food supply, according to MEPs on the Agriculture Committee.
The Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (AGRI), Norbert Lins, and AGRI coordinators issued the following statement:
“Russia decided unilaterally to prolong the Black Sea Grain Initiative, set to expire on Saturday, for only 60 days, instead of the foreseen extension of 120 days, claiming that Western sanctions have affected their food and fertiiliser exports.
The deal negotiated and implemented by the United Nations and Türkiye, as well as the EU facilitated solidarity lanes, allowed the re-establishment of the export of Ukrainian grains and fertilisers. Prices came down, despite being still high due to the impact of inflation.
To ensure food security, we defend the importance of strengthening our solidarity lanes and call for Russia to stop using the Black Sea grain deal to finance its war.
We also demand Russia and its proxy forces cease all military actions, in particular their attacks on residential areas and civilian infrastructure, to withdraw all military forces, proxies and military equipment from the entire internationally recognised territory of Ukraine, and put an end to this brutal aggression”.
Background
Russia’s war against Ukraine led to a blockage of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports and significant price increases for grains and fertilisers. For four months, the ports of Chornomorsk, Odesa and Yuzhny/Pivdennyi were blocked by Russian vessels and mines, preventing some 20 million tons of wheat from reaching its destination.
According to the United Nations, since the agreement in July 2022, 1.600 ships have transported 24 million metric tonnes of grain and other foodstuffs, with 55 per cent of food exports going to developing countries.
Artigo publicado originalmente em Parlamento Europeu.