ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United States on Tuesday said it will buy over $65 million worth of Ukrainian grain to battle the “pressing” global food insecurity, as Ukraine continues to export foodstuff from its ports through the Black Sea Grain Initiative signed with Russia and Turkey.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced in a tweet that the US will be contributing $68 million to the World Food Programme (WFP) to buy Ukrainian wheat, adding that Washington is “committed to supporting global food security for the most vulnerable and call on all countries to follow suit.”
The United Nations and Turkey brokered a deal between Russia and Ukraine in July, allowing for the resumption of exporting Ukrainian grains and other foodstuffs for the first time since the start of the war.
Following the signing of the deal, the Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) was launched in Istanbul with the purpose of monitoring the shipments through the Black Sea and facilitating the implementation of the agreement.
The center said in a progress report on Tuesday that it has authorized the movement of 21 Ukrainian vessels in the first half of August, allowing for the exportation of over 560 thousand metric tons of Ukrainian foodstuff, with corn accounting for over 450 thousand of that number.
Turkey has received 26 percent of the foodstuff exported from Ukraine, more than any other country in the world, with Iran and South Korea both in a close second with 22 percent each, the report added.
The first ship carrying grain since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war departed from Ukrainian ports on August 1 and it arrived in Turkish waters for inspection two days after.
Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine in February, leading to a pressing rise in global food prices, as the two countries play a large role in exporting foodstuff to the international market.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu earlier said the grain agreement could form the basis for a “comprehensive ceasefire” between Kyiv and Moscow and could lead to “lasting peace” in the region.
Ukraine exports over 10 percent of the world’s wheat, and over 48 percent of sunflower products, seeds, and oil, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization.
