MV Brave Commander ship carrying 30 tons of Ukrainian wheat docked at the port of Djibouti on August 30, 2022. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

The deal would include Mykolaiv's ports, which handed 35% of Ukrainian food exports before Russia’s “special military operation” began.  

Russia and Ukraine signed separate accords with the UN and Turkey in Istanbul last July, allowing grain exports to leave Ukraine to help ease a global food crisis. The agreement allowed for exports of grains and other foods to resume from the ports of Odessa, Chernomorsk, and Yuzhny, and was extended for another 120 days last November.