Ukrainian Ship Loaded with Wheat Arrives to Lebanon

A Ukrainian ship loaded with 11,000 tonnes of wheat has arrived at the port of Tripoli in northern Lebanon on Tuesday, the state news agency NNA reported.

The Golden Bird ship has started unloading its cargo, the agency quoted the port director Ahmed Tamer as saying, adding that another Ukrainian wheat ship, Princess Mariam, had unloaded a cargo of 7,000 tonnes of wheat in Tripoli port on Feb. 28.

Princess Mariam, which had arrived from Ukraine's Mariupol port, will return to Tripoli with a new wheat cargo, Tamer added without setting a date for its return.

Both ships left Ukraine shortly before the Russian invasion, Tamer told NNA on Feb. 28.

An economy ministry official told Reuters last month that two wheat shipments to Lebanon that were being loaded in Ukraine had been delayed due to the war.

Lebanon has one month's wheat reserves at most and is seeking import agreements from various countries, Economy Minister Amin Salam told Reuters on Feb. 25, amid supply fears in the market due to the Ukraine crisis.

(Reporting by Mahmoud Mourad, Editing by Louise Heavens)