Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s recent visit to Turkey was important in seeking ways to free Ukrainian and Russian grain, which is stuck because of the war that Russia initiated in Ukraine. Lavrov met his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, and they discussed creating a “safe grain corridor” from the Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea through the Turkish Straits.
However, in order to open such a corridor, both Ukraine and Russia should come to an agreement. Russia wants to clear the naval mines from the waters, but Ukraine does not want to comply because it feels threatened and unprotected since Russia is still attacking its ports.
On the other hand, Moscow is trying to downplay the importance of the Ukrainian grain. Mr. Lavrov said that it makes up only 1/100 of the world’s grain.
In fact, Russia is a much bigger producer of grain but combined with Ukraine, they provide a large amount of the whole supply. Since there are embargos in transportation from Russia, the Russian grain can also not be exported. So the problem is two-sided. In order to feed the world both Ukrainian and Russian grain should be distributed again; otherwise, there will be severe famine starting soon from Africa.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, the Ukrainian grain shipments from its Black Sea ports have stalled and more than 20 million tons of grain are stuck in silos.
Turkey’s role since the beginning of the war and in solving this crisis is vital since Ankara has taken on a mediation role by talking to both sides and hosting meetings. It neighbors both countries at sea and is ready to take on a role within an observation mechanism, which could involve a Turkish naval escort for tankers leaving Ukraine and transiting the Turkish Straits.
The deal at the end of the meeting between Mr. Çavuşoğlu and Mr. Lavrov pointed to a mechanism involving Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the U.N. being the guarantors of the process. Russia wants the grain shipments to be monitored and checked and the ports cleared of mines that would leave Ukraine feeling unprotected. I think this fear is not ungrounded.
On the other hand, Ukraine claims that Russia is stealing its grain and is shipping stolen grain from Crimea. This was the claim made by Ukraine’s ambassador to Turkey and he also said that they made their appeal for Ankara to help. However, Russia denies this claim. A spokesperson for the Russian occupation authority in Crimea, Oleg Kryuchkov, said that grain arrives in Crimea from Melitopol in Russia, so it is Russian grain.
It is very disappointing to see that basic needs like grain are being manipulated and intercepted because of political calculations. There has been improvements in technology and science in the world but mankind is far from uniting among humanity. Globalism is weakening. It is depressing to see politicians allowing people to starve in their fight for a power struggle. It is not a promising era for the world and if the leaders don’t learn lessons from this crisis, we will have to face much severe ones in the near future.
