State Department News Briefing Regarding Black Sea Grain Initiative
Dear Friends & Neighbors,
Signing ceremony of the Black Sea Grain Initiative on July 22, 2022, Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Sea_Grain_Initiative#/media/File:Signing_Ceremony_of_the_Black_Sea_Grain_Initiative_in_Istanbul.png (Attribution: Umut Çolak/Voice of America, Public Domain license: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_domain, Presented at: WindermereSun.com)
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In the video published by PBS NewsHour, on Oct 31, 2022, as “WATCH LIVE: State Department holds news briefing as Russian barrage on Kyiv knocks out water in city“, below:
As Ned Price indicated in his speech above, in bold italics, “This is not a bilateral issue between Russia and Ukraine. It is not an issue between any two countries on the face of the earth. This is an urgent imperative on the part of much of the world. All of the developing countries of the world need this grain. This is the bread basket of the world. We all remember what a dire position the world was in before the start of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the way food and commodity prices had skyrocketed. Those prices have fallen with the onset of this initiative. But all of that progress hangs in the balance if Russia doesn’t resume its participation in this. This is not something that would just strike out at Ukraine. This is something that would be a painful blow to the rest of the world.”
To better understand the Black Sea Grain Initiative mentioned by U.S. State Department spokesperson, Ned Price, in the video above, please refer to the excerpt from wikipedia, in italics, below:
The Initiative on the Safe Transportation of Grain and Foodstuffs from Ukrainian ports, also called the Black Sea Grain Initiative,[1] was an agreement between Russia and Ukraine with Turkey and the United Nations (UN) made during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine, ongoing since February, had led to a complete halt of grain shipments from Ukraine, previously a major exporter. The documents were signed in Istanbul on 22 July 2022. The July agreement created procedures to safely export grain from certain ports to attempt to address the 2022 food crisis. By late October, over 400 voyages had successfully left Ukrainian ports carrying nearly 9.5 million tonnes of grain and other food products.
The agreement was to expire on 19 November 2022 unless renewed. Renewal negotiations were being facilitated by the UN throughout October 2022.[2][3] However, Russia suspended its participation in the agreement on 29 October because of a drone attack on Russian naval ships in the port of Sevastopol.[4][5] Despite Russia’s non-participation, a number of grain ships continued to depart from Ukrainian ports with the UN and Turkey’s approval, although it is unclear whether shipments can go on indefinitely.[6]
Background
In 2022, 47 million people were estimated to be suffering from severe hunger as a result of the world’s soaring food costs partly due to the impact of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Developing and emerging countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America have been impacted the most from this war due to their reliance on imported grain and fuel.[7]
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Ukraine is among the world’s leading grain exporters, providing more than 45 million tonnes annually to the global market.[8] Some 20 million tonnes of grain had been held up in the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, according to the BBC.[9] Almost all of Ukraine’s wheat, corn, and sunflower oil were exported through its Black Sea ports prior to the conflict. Before the agreement, some ports’ infrastructure has been harmed while others are under Russian control and others are blocked by mines.[10] Initially, the Ukrainian government was reluctant to de-mine the sea due to the scale of the task and the possibility of leaving the ports open to attack.[11]
In the video published by Al Jazeera, as “Will global food crisis caused by RUssia-Ukraine war worsen?| Inside Story“, below:
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