UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced Wednesday the appointment of Abdullah Abdul Samad Dashti of Kuwait as the new UN coordinator for the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

Dashti succeeds Amir Mahmoud Abdulla of Sudan, who served as the UN coordinator since August 2022, according to a press note from the UN chief’s office.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative was launched by Ukraine, Türkiye, Russia and the United Nations in July 2022, to enable the resumption of exports from Ukraine of grain, foodstuffs, and fertilizer, including ammonia, through a safe maritime humanitarian corridor.