Ukraine grain deal: ship inspections have resumed, says minister

theguardian.com:

Inspections of ships transporting Ukrainian grain have resumed under a UN-brokered agreement, the country’s deputy prime minister Oleksandr Kubrakov has said.

Writing on Facebook on Wednesday, Kubrakov said: “Ship inspections are being resumed, despite the Russian Federation’s attempts to disrupt the agreement.”

As part of the UN deal, inspection teams from Russia, Ukraine, the UN and Turkey ensure ships carry only food and other agricultural products and no weapons. However, Russia has been accused by Ukraine of delaying inspections, leading to a halt in grain shipments.

A spokesperson for the Joint Coordination Centre in Istanbul – which facilitates the grain – also confirmed that inspections were resuming. “Inspections teams are already at work,” Ismini Palla, of the JCC, said.

Kubrakov is in Turkey to discuss the status of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which was agreed by Russia and Ukraine last July to help alleviate a global food crisis. Moscow says it agreed to extend the deal only until 18 May.

Kyiv and the UN say the deal has another 60 days to run after then, and are seeking an agreement to ensure it continues.

Kyiv had accused Russian inspectors of preventing vessels from shipping grain from Ukraine.

The agriculture minister, Mykola Solsky, said on Wednesday that Moscow was increasing difficulties for Ukraine at a time when three eastern European countries have banned imports of Ukrainian grain and food products.

“Obviously, the Russians could not fail to take advantage of these nuances on the western border,” Solsky told reporters.

Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest exporters of wheat and other grains, including to the Middle East and Asia. Russia’s invasion last year, however, disrupted the main Black Sea export