The Turkish Ministry of Defense announced today, Friday, that two new ships loaded with grain left the ports of Ukraine towards Turkey and Iran, while the first grain ship out of Ukraine returned to Istanbul after refusing to sell it in Lebanon.

The ministry said - in a statement - that the ship "Sarmovsky" - which carries the flag of Belize - left the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk loaded with 3 thousand and 50 tons of wheat heading to the port of the Turkish state of Tekirdag (northwest).

The statement added that the ship "Star Laura" - which carries the flag of the Marshall Islands - left the Ukrainian port of Yuzhny, carrying 60,000 tons of corn bound for Iran.

Thus, the number of ships that left Ukraine - under the grain export agreement signed in Istanbul and mediated by the United Nations and Turkey between Moscow and Kiev - to 14.

first ship

In a related context, data showed that the first grain ship that left Ukraine under the grain export agreement docked in Turkey yesterday, Thursday, after 11 days at sea.

The ship's agent in Turkey said that it will continue on its way to Egypt after unloading part of its cargo.

The ship "Razoni" sailed from the Ukrainian port of Odessa on the first of August.

While the Razzoni was initially bound for Tripoli, Lebanon, the Ukrainian embassy in Beirut said the buyer had refused to take delivery due to a 5-month delay, and that the ship was looking for a new customer.

Qadir Sower, director at Mersin-based shipping agent "Taurus", told Reuters that the ship will unload 1,500 tons of corn in Turkey and will later continue its way to Egypt with the rest of its cargo of 26,527 tons.

He added that the agent only handles the berthing and unloading operations in Turkey and will not participate in the ship's trip to Egypt.

On July 22, Turkey, Russia, Ukraine and the United Nations signed the initiative document for the safe shipment of grain and foodstuffs from Ukrainian ports during a meeting hosted by Istanbul.

The agreement included securing exports of grain stuck in the Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea (Eastern Europe) to the world.

Many countries in the world are suffering from a grain crisis as a result of the inability of cargo ships to leave Ukrainian ports due to the Russian-Ukrainian war that has erupted since February 24.