Meeve (Agencies)
A senior Ukrainian official said yesterday his country’s efforts to boost exports under a deal with Russia to export grain via the Black Sea are currently focused on speeding up vessel inspections, not adding more ports. to the initiative.
Ukraine exported about 7 million tons of agricultural products in September and October and 6 million tons in November, but shipments fell sharply to less than 4 million tons in December, which Kiev attributes to slow inspections.
The Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine said that no new cargo ships are expected to arrive in Ukraine at the moment.
He said 94 vessels are awaiting inspection in the Bosphorus Strait, including 69 empty vessels waiting to be loaded and 25 vessels already loaded with agricultural products. On average, ships wait more than a month, the ministry added.
