The Black Sea grain initiative was negotiated in July 2022 between Turkey, the UN and … See more

The initiative, one of the few diplomatic achievements since the war started, allows for commercial food and fertiliser (including ammonia) exports from three key Ukrainian ports in th… See more

Despite the acute lack of trust, 33m tonnes of grain left Ukraine’s ports in the year to July. The UK says about 61% of that has gone to low- and middle-income countries, and 65% o… See more

Russia started to slow down inspections. In October 2022 there were 10 completed ship inspections a day, meaning 4.2m metric tonnes left that month, falling to seven a day in Nov… See more

The west claims Putin thought the deal was not worth preserving since it was allowing Ukrainian coffers and farmers to benefit from its grain exports. Genuine efforts were being mad… See more

Russia’s defence ministry has in effect said any ship leaving a Ukrainian port will be a legitimate military target. Turkey, a Nato member, could threaten to confront Russia by guiding t… See more