The first shipment of Ukrainian grain will leave the port of Odessa on Monday at 0530 GMT, the Turkish Defense Ministry said in a statement.
“The cargo ship “Razoni” which Sierra Leonean flag waves and is loaded with corn will leave Odessa port for Lebanon at 8:30 am (0530 GMT),” the ministry said.
Other convoys will follow this first departure respecting “the (maritime) corridor and the agreed formalities”, according to the terms of the agreement signed on July 22 with Russia, the statement added.
The “Razoni” was still at 05:00 GMT on Monday in the port of Odessa, according to the website Marine Traffic, which follows the movements of ships.
Built in 1996 and with a length of 186 m and a maximum beam of 25 m, the “Razoni” has a hold capacity of 30,000 tons.
Food Crisis Relief
The agreement signed on July 22 in Istanbul, which allows the resumption of Ukrainian exports, aims to alleviate a global food crisis due to the increase in grain prices that puts the world’s poorest countries at risk of famine.
On Wednesday, the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) was inaugurated in Istanbul, in charge of controlling the Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Seaas established in the agreement.
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The CCC includes representatives from Ukraine and Russia as well as Turkey and the United Nations.
The CCC will be in charge of registering and controlling the merchant ships participating in the convoys, tracking them via the Internet and by satellite, and having the ships inspected at the time of loading in Ukrainian ports and upon arrival in Turkish ports. .