Russia and Ukraine signed a landmark agreement on Friday to reopen Ukrainian Black Sea ports for grain exports, in a deal hailed as easing the global food crisis by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Russian and Ukrainian ministers signed the agreement separately, avoiding sitting at the same table or shaking hands at the signing ceremony in Istanbul.
“Today, there is a beacon on the Black Sea. A beacon of hope…, possibility…and relief in a world that needs it more than ever,” Guterres told the gathering, urging Russia and Ukraine to fully implement the agreement.
For his part, Erdogan said that the agreement Türkiye also signed would aid in the prevention of famine and the reduction of global food price inflation.
