US welcomes Ukraine grain deal, lauds Turkish, UN support

WASHINGTON

The US welcomed on Friday a just-inked agreement to ensure Ukrainian grain previously trapped in Black Sea ports can reach world markets, calling it a "positive step" to address global hunger.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for their "continued diplomatic efforts to reach this deal, which could address some of the far-reach impacts" of Russia's war.

"We think it's important to note though the success, of course, is going to depend on Russia's compliance with this arrangement and actually implementing its commitments, and of course, ending its blockade of Ukrainian ports" in order to ensure Ukrainian goods can reach world markets," said Kirby.

"We fully expect the implementation of today's arrangement to commence swiftly to prevent the world's most vulnerable people from sliding deeper into food insecurity and malnutrition, as well as extreme hunger. Again, the devil's in the details here. We're grateful this agreement was able to come to closure today," he added.

Under the deal, a coordination center will be established to carry out joint inspections at the entrances and exits of harbors, and to ensure the safety of the routes.

Internationally praised for its mediator role, Türkiye coordinated with Moscow and Kyiv to open a corridor from the Ukrainian port city of Odesa to resume global grain shipments long halted due to Russia's war on Ukraine, now in its fifth month.