On Monday, France and Romania signed an agreement to facilitate the transport of Ukrainian grain via the Mediterranean sea to developing countries, particularly in Africa and the Middle East.
The agreement was signed by French Transport Minister Clement Beaune and Ukraine’s ambassador to France, Vadym Omelchenko.
Speaking to France Inter radio, Beaune said that the deal pertains to exports via land, sea, and rivers. Celebrating the agreement, he said, “I am proud that, through a European action, by finding land routes, we have been able to almost come back to the same level of grain exports that Ukraine had before the war.”
#Ukraine | Signature de l'accord franco-roumain de coopération pour l'exportation des céréales ukrainiennes 🇫🇷🇷🇴🇺🇦🇪🇺 pic.twitter.com/FAPLzNZxBQ
— Clement Beaune (@CBeaune) September 12, 2022
According to the draft agreement accessed by Reuters, the agreement aims to enhance the efficiency of the Galați port, Romania’s second-largest port, and also equip border points in Northern Romania. The deal will also bolster grain storage at the Constanta port and in the Sulina canal.
Furthermore, it facilitates a ‘medium-term strategy’ on the corridor between Romania and Ukraine, for which France will provide equipment to “optimise ship traffic.” France will also fund technical expertise and help Romania identify prospects for future funding.
Romania is the European Union’s (EU) second largest exporter of wheat to non-EU countries, with France placed at the top of the list. It is also the largest exporter of maize to non-EU countries.
#Ukraine | J'ai signé avec mon homologue roumain, Ionel Scrioșteanu, un accord qui facilite l'exportation des céréales ukrainiennes en apportant notre expertise logistique, au côté de l'ambassadeur @OmelchenkoVadym.
— Clement Beaune (@CBeaune) September 12, 2022
Notre solidarité avec l'#Ukraine est totale 🇫🇷🇷🇴🇺🇦🇪🇺 pic.twitter.com/qJkAfdjEeI
Following its invasion of Ukraine in February, Russia imposed a naval blockade that left dozens of ships and over 20 million tonnes of Ukrainian grain exports stuck at ports. This led to rising demand for grains, skyrocketing food prices, and the depletion of wheat reserves in countries that are entirely dependent on wheat from Ukraine and Russia, such as Egypt and Lebanon.
In this regard, the United Nations and Turkey brokered an agreement between Ukraine and Russia in July to facilitate the export of grains through the Ukrainian Black Sea.
Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin raised concern that of the 87 ships deployed to carry 60,000 tonnes of grain, only two had reached poor countries that are in “dire need of food.” Putin argued that the agreement was “just a scam,” claiming the EU was keeping a majority of the grains for itself. He thus threatened to reimpose restrictions on grain exports through the Black Sea.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 11 September 2022
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) September 11, 2022
Find out more about the UK government's response: https://t.co/XE7QGQnZeh
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/88KnwEqDNj
In the run-up to the France-Romania agreement, Beaune dismissed Putin’s claim. Likewise, the British Defence Ministry cited United Nations data and highlighted that 30% of the grain was sent to low- and middle-income countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. It accused Russia of deliberately spreading misinformation to distract from its enabling role in the food security crisis.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the war’s impact on the global food market could lead an additional 11-19 million people to chronic hunger by the end of the year.