"The cargo ship Brave Commander arrived at the Pivdennyi Sea Port. Very soon (Ukrainian) grain will be delivered to Ethiopia," Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov wrote on Twitter.
Once loaded, the MV Brave Commander will carry a shipment of Ukrainian grain organized by the World Food Program to Ethiopia via a grain corridor through the Black Sea brokered by the U.N. and Turkey in late July.
WFP has purchased an initial 30,000 tons of Ukrainian wheat. MV Brave Commander has a capacity of 23,000 tons.
"The remaining balance will be loaded and shipped on another vessel soon," Phiri said.
"WFP is hopeful that the MV Brave Commander is the first of what will now become regular shipments out of Ukraine as the Black Sea Grain Initiative gains momentum."
It is not yet clear when the ship will depart and WFP did not release details of where it would be heading.
"Loading and moving ships in and out of ports in the context of the current conflict is a complex operation," said Phiri.
"Getting Ukrainian grain to WFP's humanitarian operations in places like Ethiopia, Somalia and Yemen will ensure a double benefit to both Ukraine's economy and famine risk populations in areas of the world hardest hit by the global food crisis."
