The Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI) was signed on 22 July 2022 in Istanbul as parallel agreements between the United Nations and Türkiye on one side, and Ukraine and Russia respectively on the other. The deal created a maritime humanitarian corridor enabling commercial food and fertilizer exports from three Ukrainian ports — Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Yuzhny/Pivdennyi — which had been effectively blockaded since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Implementation was managed by a Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) in Istanbul, staffed by representatives from the UN, Türkiye, Ukraine, and Russia. The JCC inspected outbound vessels for weapons and inbound vessels for contraband, and registered ships entering and leaving the corridor. A companion Memorandum of Understanding committed the UN to facilitate Russian food and fertilizer exports, which Moscow argued were impeded by Western sanctions on payments, insurance, and shipping.
The initiative was initially valid for 120 days and was renewed several times in 2022 and 2023. Russia withdrew from the agreement on 17 July 2023, citing unmet demands regarding its own agricultural exports, the reconnection of Rosselkhozbank to SWIFT, and the Togliatti–Odesa ammonia pipeline. After withdrawal, Russia resumed strikes on Ukrainian port infrastructure, and Ukraine established a unilateral corridor hugging the western Black Sea coast.
According to UN figures, while the BSGI was active it enabled the export of roughly 33 million metric tons of grain and foodstuffs, with significant shipments going to low- and middle-income countries. The World Food Programme used the corridor to source wheat for operations in countries including Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Yemen.
The BSGI is frequently cited in Model UN debates on food security, sanctions design, and humanitarian diplomacy as a rare example of functional wartime cooperation between belligerents, and as a case study in the fragility of issue-specific agreements when broader political grievances remain unresolved.
Example
In July 2023, Russia suspended its participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, ending a year-long arrangement that had allowed Ukrainian ports like Odesa to export grain to global markets.
Frequently asked questions
The United Nations and Türkiye jointly mediated the agreement, with Secretary-General António Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan playing central roles in the July 2022 signing in Istanbul.
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