After Russia’s exit from the Black Sea “grain deal”, Latvia should take the reins in creating a transit corridor for exports of Ukrainian grain. The capacity of Latvian sea ports is enough to ensure exports of 20% or 15 million tonnes of Ukrainian grain. Neither Lithuania nor Estonia have this capacity, notes Latvian Stevedoring Company Association (LSA).
Baltic States have a very important role in resolving the crisis with exports of Ukrainian agricultural products, and Latvia, using its large sea ports and transit sector’s capacity and support from professionals, can contribute a great deal to the restoration of exports of Ukrainian grain.
“By implementing all necessary procedures to create this transit corridor as soon as possible, this includes the creation of a green corridor for Ukrainian freight, we will be able to help Ukraine overcome the Russian-created grain export crisis, which still creates catastrophic threats to the continued supply of food to African countries.
It also limits Ukraine’s economy,” stresses LSA Council’s Chairman Ivars Landmanis.
During his meeting with his Ukrainian colleague Mikola Solsky, Latvia’s ex-Minister of Agriculture Kaspars Gerhards affirmed Latvia’s readiness to continue providing Ukraine with all forms of support. This includes looking for practical solutions to Ukraine’s grain exports using Latvian sea ports. This is why LSA’s Ukrainian partners with whom the association has been in active communication since March 2022 invite Latvia to take the initiative, because after multiple successful visits and agreements on possible cooperation have convinced them Latvian sea port infrastructure is appropriate for exports of large volumes of grain.
LSA notes that the biggest problem is the width of the rails on the railway connecting Latvia with Poland and Lithuania, the urgent need to ensure investment in the adaptation of infrastructure to the needs of Ukrainian freight, as well as urgent need to increase storage capacity. It is also important to improve the border control capacity on Poland’s side after the test shipments in 2022.
Because Ukrainian railway infrastructure is not compatible with the majority of EU member states’ railway networks, the current alternative is transporting grain using cargo trucks to deliver grain to freight ships.
In any event, LSA stresses the importance to invest into rail transition and expansion of storage infrastructure’s capacity. Involvement from the state is necessary across the entire process. This includes in communication with the European Commission on support of exports of Ukrainian grain.
Without a doubt – railway transit is the main and fastest way to export large volumes of freight.
“Because the sea port sector has been diversifying its capacities since 2014 and continues providing exports of Baltic freight, as well as imports and exports to and from Central Asian countries, Latvia’s export sector would not suffer from this. By taking the initiative in the Baltic corridor’s creation to deliver Ukrainian agricultural products to world markets, Latvia would provide significant assistance not only to Ukraine, but also to those countries of the world that are the destination of Ukrainian agricultural products,” says Ivars Landmanis.
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