Ship carrying Ukrainian grain awaits inspection off the coast of Turkey

The first cargo ship to leave Ukraine since the Russian invasion has anchored at an inspection area in the Black Sea off Istanbul.

Officials from Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the United Nations will check that the grain shipment is in line with an agreement signed last month by Moscow and Kyiv to block Ukraine’s agricultural exports and appease global food crisis or not.

The Sierra Leone-flagged Razoni, loaded with 26,000 tonnes of corn, departed Odesa on Monday. Its final destination is Lebanon.

The ship is anchored off the coast of Istanbul, near the mouth of the Bosporus Strait connecting the Black Sea with the Sea of ​​Marmara and with the Aegean Sea.

More ships from Ukraine are expected to set sail in the coming days.

According to UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric, about 27 ships are already waiting at three Ukrainian ports with goods and contracts signed.