Ukraine and UN's common policy is to continue Grain Initiative — Zelenskyy

The common policy of Ukraine and the UN is to extend the Grain Initiative after 18 March.

This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after a meeting with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in Kyiv.

"Today, we are interested in ensuring that there is no hunger in the world. And our common policy is to continue the operation of the 'grain corridor'. We raised questions on the future extension of this initiative, details of how we can still help the world and expand the initiative," said Zelensky.

"I would like to note the extreme importance of continuing the Black Sea Grain Initiative," Guterres said, Interfax-Ukraine writes.

Earlier: 

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres arrived on a visit to Ukraine.

It was reported that during his third visit to Ukraine since the beginning of the war, the 73-year-old Guterres would meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to negotiate the extension of the grain initiative.

The contract for the export of Ukrainian grain through the Russian-controlled Black Sea expires on 18 March, and the UN is insisting on another extension.

Earlier, the mass media reported that Ukraine has started online negotiations with partners regarding the continuation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which aims to ensure that Kyiv can continue supplying grain to world markets.

The initiative was launched with the mediation of the United Nations and Turkey last July, and was extended in November. It expires on 18 March, unless an extension is agreed upon.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on Sunday that Ankara was making every effort to extend the agreement.

Russia has stated that it would agree to the extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative only if the interests of its own agricultural producers were taken into account.

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