House of Lords Debate
Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon
Minister of State for South and Central Asia, North Africa, UN and the Commonwealth
Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict
King Charles Street London
SW1A 2AH
4 August 2022
To: All Peers
House of Lords
My Lords,
Update on grain exports from Ukraine
During the Lords debate on 20 July on the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in causing worsening food security in East Africa, I promised to update the House on any developments on the UN-led agreement with Ukraine, Turkey and Russia to allow the resumption of maritime exports of grain from Ukraine.
On 22 July, an agreement was reached that allows for:
• Safe access for commercial shipping through a maritime corridor to Odesa, Chernomorsk and Pivdennyi ports.
• A Joint Coordination Centre to be established in Istanbul, with all parties represented, to monitor vessels and assess threat levels.
• Checks on inbound and outbound vessels to ensure that only grains are being moved.
• A commitment from all parties not to attack merchant or other civilian vessels, or port facilities, covered by the plan.
The resumption of maritime grain exports from Ukraine will help address the global food security crisis which has been severely exacerbated by Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, their destruction and theft of grain and the seizure and blockading of maritime ports.
The UK played a central role in securing the UN agreement. We have worked with international partners, stressing the importance of Russia ending their blockade of Ukrainian ports. We have also provided, alongside international partners, practical support in enabling the deal to go ahead including the military equipment to protect Ukrainian ports. The deal must now be implemented.
The Russian cruise missile strike on Odesa port on Saturday 23 July shows the challenge of implementing this. The Foreign Secretary and other G7 Foreign Ministers were quick to condemn the attack for which the Russians have admitted responsibility.
Despite commitments to proceed, further Russian attacks could undermine the deal. We are working with partners to ensure Russia delivers on the agreement it has signed up to.
The first grain ship to leave under the UN-brokered deal departed Odesa on 1 August carrying 26,000 tons of corn, destined for Lebanon.
This is an important first step but it requires many months of successful implementation to help bring Ukrainian grain to world markets at scale. We are continuing to support efforts to increase the capacity of land and rail routes to export grain from Ukraine through EU countries.
Yours sincerely,
LORD (TARIQ) AHMAD OF WIMBLEDON
Minister of State for South and Central Asia, North Africa, UN and the Commonwealth Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict
