Food efforts inspected in Istanbul

ISTANBUL－The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited Istanbul on Saturday and inspected the efforts of the Joint Coordination Center in bringing Ukrainian grain to international markets.

He visited the JCC teams who were inspecting a vessel anchored at the Marmara Sea and received a briefing about the inspection process. "Getting more food and fertilizers out of Ukraine and Russia is critical to further calm commodity markets and lower prices for consumers," Guterres said, addressing the JCC personnel and media at the JCC center.

"The other part of this package deal is the unimpeded access to the global markets of Russian food and fertilizer, which are not subject to sanctions," Guterres said, hinting at the possible start of the exports from Russia, which was agreed upon but not yet implemented.

Russian fertilizers and agricultural products must be able to reach world markets "unimpeded "or a global food crisis could strike as early as next year, Guterres said.

Russia and Ukraine account for a vast amount of the world's exported grains and fertilizers.

Following a landmark deal signed by Russia and Ukraine with Turkiye under UN auspices in July, the first grain-laden ship from Ukraine passed through Istanbul's Bosporus Strait on Aug 3.

Until now 43 ships with more than 600,000 tons of cargo-carrying capacity have been authorized to join the efforts to transport Ukrainian grain, the JCC said.

As food prices soar worldwide, the successful start of the deal comes as a big relief to many countries that depend on Russian and Ukrainian exports.

Guterres thanked all parties involved in the deal, stressing the importance of collaboration.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said that "the efforts undertaken by the JCC will have an effect in easing the global food insecurity crisis and will drive the prices down. It is our hope that the foundations for a permanent peace can also be established during this process".

The JCC, which consists solely of civilians from Turkiye, Russia, Ukraine and the UN, is also expanding, Akar said. The center now hosts a total of 71 personnel, compared with a team of 20 when it was set up.

As Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly traded accusations over attacks on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed that independent inspectors can travel to the plant, Reuters reported on Friday.

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, "welcomed recent statements indicating that both Ukraine and Russia supported the IAEA's aim to send a mission to" the plant.

Guterres urged Zaporizhzhia not to disconnect the facility from the grid and potentially cut supplies to millions of Ukrainians.

Action urged

The Kremlin said Putin and France's President Emmanuel Macron agreed that the IAEA should carry out inspections "as soon as possible" to "assess the real situation on the ground".

As Russia's special military operation is about to reach the six-month mark, the US announced new military aid, including drones, for Ukraine on Friday. The US said a new $775 million aid package will give Ukraine weapons including the Scan Eagle surveillance drones and mine-resistant vehicles.

It brings total US military aid to Ukraine to about $10.6 billion during the administration of US President Joe Biden. It is the 19th time the Pentagon has provided equipment from Defense Department stocks to Ukraine since August last year.

The Russian state energy company Gazprom said on Friday that the country will halt natural gas supplies to Europe for three days at the end of the month via its main pipeline into the region.

Gazprom said the shutdown was because the pipeline's only remaining compressor requires maintenance. Gas flows via other pipeline routes have also fallen since the Ukraine crisis.

Xinhua - Agencies