The Pope said that the grain corridor should be open, and the export of grain from Ukraine should be safe.
Pope Francis on July 30 called on Russia to renew the Black Sea Grain Agreement , which allowed Ukraine to export grain from its seaports despite the war.
The Pope stated this during his message on Sunday, July 30, noting that the grain corridor should be open, and the export of grain from Ukraine should be safe.
“I appeal to my brothers, the authorities of the Russian Federation, so that the Black Sea Initiative can be resumed and the grain can be transported safely,” Francis said during a message on Sunday.
Addressing the gathering in St. Peter’s Square, the Pope said: “The cry of millions of brothers and sisters suffering from hunger rises to heaven,” Reuters clarifies .
Updated . At the same time, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in his Twitter microblog called important the call of the Pope to Moscow to resume the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
“The reaction of world spiritual leaders to the Russian missile terror and the destruction of Ukrainian agricultural products is extremely important in order to protect the whole world from the food crisis, and especially the peoples of Africa and Asia, who suffer most from the threat of hunger. Ukraine is and will be the guarantor of the food security of the world. The main thing now – to stop Russian terror and fully implement the Formula of Peace,” Zelensky said.
The situation with Ukrainian grain
Russia withdrew from the grain agreement on July 17, 2023. After that, the Kremlin said that they would consider ships in the Black Sea to be those that carry military cargo.
The European Union has declared that it is ready to export almost all agricultural products of Ukraine along the roads of solidarity . This statement was made by EU Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski.
Almost immediately, information appeared that the occupiers could block alternative grain routes . For shipping companies looking for a way to deliver Ukrainian grain to world markets, options are becoming scarcer. With Russia pulling out of a deal that guaranteed the safe passage of commercial ships through the Black Sea, analysts said insurance premiums are likely to be prohibitively expensive for shipowners.
Source : Униан