Belarus told the United Nations on Friday that it would allow, without preconditions, the transit of grain from Ukraine through its territory for export from Lithuanian ports, Reuters has reported.
Belarus, the closest ally of Russia, said in June that it would allow the transit of Ukrainian grain via its territory if Belarus was allowed to ship its goods from the Baltic ports as well. Ukraine then did not agree to the proposal.
Belarus Deputy Foreign Minister Yury Ambrazevich, who met with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York on Friday, said that Belarus would now allow the transit of Ukrainian grain without preconditions, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
In July, the UN and Turkey brokered a deal with Russia and Ukraine to resume Ukraine’s Black Sea shipments of grain that were stalled after Moscow’s invasion on February 24.
According to the UN, Russia’s war in Ukraine worsened a global food crisis, pushing some 47 million people into “acute hunger”.
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