This photograph taken on August 2, 2022 shows the Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship Razoni carrying 26,000 tonnes of corn, off shore of north-west Istanbul.
(OZAN KOSE / AFP)
ISTANBUL / KIEV – The first grain-laden cargo ship leaving a Ukrainian port under a UN-brokered deal anchored off Istanbul on the Black Sea on Tuesday, waiting to be inspected by the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) before it resumes its voyage to Lebanon.
The Turkish Defence Ministry tweeted that the Sierra Leone-flagged ship Razoni, which left Odesa early on Monday with 26,527 tons of corn, has reached the Black Sea entrance of the Bosphorus Strait and anchored at an assigned point.
The Turkish Defence Ministry tweeted that the Sierra Leone-flagged ship Razoni, which left Odesa early on Monday with 26,527 tons of corn, has reached the Black Sea entrance of the Bosphorus Strait and anchored at an assigned point
The ship will receive an inspection by representatives from the JCC at 10 am local time (0700 GMT) on Wednesday.
The ministry is organizing a special program at a location on the shore with a perfect view of the site to enable press members to cover the delegation's boarding the ship.
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Once cleared, it will pass through the strait, sailing toward the Mediterranean as planned, and the JCC will closely monitor the vessel until it arrives at the destination.
"The route and the humanitarian corridor that the ship follows, possible needs, and the details and preparations regarding its inspection are carried out in line with the procedures and principles agreed at the center," Turkish Rear Admiral Ozcan Altunbulak told reporters at the center on Tuesday.
He also said currently, the preparations of the other ships that will carry grain and other foodstuffs from the three ports of Ukraine are continuing.
The JCC was inaugurated in Istanbul last week. It has a total of 20 representatives from Ukraine, Russia, the United Nations and Türkiye to monitor the implementation of the grain shipment process.
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On July 22, Russia and Ukraine signed a deal with Türkiye and the United Nations to allow food and fertilizer exports from the Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea, namely Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Pivdennyi.
NATO
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday held a phone conversation with Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Jens Stoltenberg to discuss assistance for Kiev, the presidential press service reported.
At the talks, Zelensky informed Stoltenberg about the situation on the frontline in Ukraine and emphasized the importance for Kiev to get non-lethal military aid from NATO agreed upon during the alliance's 2022 Madrid summit.
Besides, Zelensky said that Ukraine is seeking to receive more heavy weapons from NATO member states.
READ MORE: Moscow, Kyiv sign deal to resume grain exports from Ukraine
The parties also discussed the resumption of grain exports from Ukraine via the Black Sea ports and the prospects of NATO's assistance in humanitarian demining in Ukraine.
At the NATO summit in the Spanish capital on June 29-30, the members of the alliance agreed to provide support for Ukraine in multiple areas, including secure communications, cyber defenses and resilience, fuel, and medical supplies.