Taras Vysotskiy said that in the remaining months of the season, volumes could include 10 million tonnes of grain exported via the Black Sea grain export corridor and 5.6 million via alternative routes. Ukraine has exported 37.2 million tonnes of grain so far in the 2022/23 July-June season, including 20.6 million tonnes via the corridor. Although the grain corridor agreement was extended last month, Ukraine reiterated that the number of cargo ships carrying its agricultural products passing through the Bosporus remains critically low. The ministry earlier this week said that March figures "differ little" from February's, with an average of 2.8 ships a day passing through the strait. January's level was the lowest ever, at 2.5 vessels per day. Ukraine has said Russian inspectors artificially delay ship checks, an accusation denied by Moscow.
According to Kyiv authorities, the current pace of exports only utilises 30 percent of the capacity of Ukrainian ports. Ukraine has appealed to the United Nations and Turkey to press Russia to stop hindering grain shipments that supply millions of people, and not to use food as a weapon. (Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; editing by Jason Neely, Kirsten Donovan)
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