Dear readers,

We are together with our 55th issue.

The global food crisis, which reached an extreme extent with the pandemic and then Russia's invasion of Ukraine, was resolved with the grain corridor created by Turkey's diplomatic success.

The grain crisis, which led to an increase in food prices in the world and inflation to reach historical peaks, was resolved by re-transporting grain to world markets via the Black Sea, with the grain corridor created with the contributions of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and UN Secretary-General António Guterres. President Erdoğan said: "Together, we will contribute to preventing the danger of hunger that awaits billions of people all over the world, from Africa to the Middle East, America and Asia."

UN Secretary General António Guterres said, "There is a ray of hope in the Black Sea. It was thanks to Mr. President Erdogan's persistent approach. This agreement will close the shortage in food supply."

The main aim of the efforts to create a grain corridor is to ensure that ships loaded with grain and other food products stuck in Ukrainian ports, especially in Odessa, are opened to world markets. 

Within the scope of the agreement, 5 officials from Turkey, Russia, Ukraine and the UN each work at the Joint Coordination Center located in the campus of the National Defense University in Istanbul-Maslak. And a group of 20 people is led by a Turkish admiral. The agreement, of which validity period was determined as 120 days at the first stage, can be extended for another 120.

Within the scope of the grain corridor agreement, the first ship departed from the Odessa Port of Ukraine on 1 August. Sierra Leone-flagged dry cargo ship Razoni carrying 26 thousand tons of corn left for Lebanon after the inspection conducted in Istanbul.

Hope to meet you in our next issue…