ANKARA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th July, 2023) Turkish investors are hoping for a quick solution to the grain deal crisis, as a prolonged suspension of the agreement could lead to serious problems worldwide, Turkish daily Dunya reported on Thursday, citing a commodity exchange official.
On July 18, the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which provided for a humanitarian corridor to allow exports of Ukrainian grain over the past year expired, as Russia did not renew its participation in the deal.
The newspaper reported, citing Gaziantep Commodity Exchange Assembly President Ahmet Tiryakioglu, that Turkish investors hope the initiative will continue as a humanitarian bridge to prevent a global food crisis. The official added that the grain deal supported overcoming the crisis without damaging the balance between the world's food supply and demand. Nearly 33 million tonnes of grain were transported to different countries before Russia's withdrawal from the agreement, he added.
Tiryakioglu stressed that the conflict in Ukraine has affected the whole world, especially undermining the food security of African states.
"Russia and Ukraine are the two most important agricultural powers in the world. The war between these two countries was a development that deeply affected not only Ukraine but the whole world," the official said, adding that the current situation with the deal poses the threat of a food crisis in the future, especially for African countries.
The grain deal was brokered by the United Nations and Turkey between Russia and Ukraine in July 2022 to facilitate the export of grain and fertilizer from Black Sea ports in the midst of hostilities. Despite agreeing to several extensions of the grain deal since then, Moscow had indicated that the deal's component on facilitating Russian grain and fertilizer exports had not been fulfilled.
