Ukraine is discussing a plan with Turkey, Egypt and India to protect food shipments through the Black Sea, President Volodymyr Zelensky told Bloomberg. Russia is resisting the proposal.
The three countries have suggested using vessels under their flags to carry food from both Ukrainian and Russian ports, with commitments from both sides not to attack the ships. Zelensky said intermediaries from Turkey, India and Egypt have repeatedly contacted Moscow, but it remains opposed.
The talks would give Turkey a renewed role after it and the UN brokered the original Black Sea Grain Initiative in Istanbul in July 2022. That deal enabled nearly 33 million metric tons of Ukrainian grain exports before Russia withdrew in July 2023.
Ukrainian Black Sea ports, the country’s main outlet for food exports, have seen shipments halted since August amid Russian attacks on ports and vessels. Kyiv can currently export only 38 percent of its usual volume and has asked the EU to reinstate its “solidarity lanes” rail and port routes.
“We cannot manage this volume of shipments by rail,” Zelensky said. “Everyone needs this grain.”
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