Last ship with Ukrainian grain leaves port of Odesa

The last ship to travel under a UN-brokered deal that allows the safe Black Sea export of Ukrainian grain left the port of Odesa early on Sunday ahead of a deadline to extend the agreement.

That’s according to a Reuters witness and MarineTraffic.com, Ukrinform reports.

Russia has not agreed to register any new ships since June 27 and the initiative will expire on Monday, July 17, unless Moscow agrees to extend it.

A United Nations spokesman said on Friday that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was waiting for a response from Russian President Vladimir Putin on a proposal to extend the deal.

Putin told South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in a phone call on Saturday that commitments to remove obstacles to Russian food and fertilizer exports had yet to be fulfilled.

Russia has repeatedly threatened to quit the deal, brokered by the UN and Turkey in July 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It had been previously extended for two months on May 17.

Source: ukrinform.net