THE White House said an agreement was struck today to ensure safe navigation, eliminate the use of force, and prevent the use of commercial vessels for military purposes in the Black Sea.

The US said it has made separate agreements with Ukraine and Russia to ensure all navigation through the area is protected.

The deal also bans Russian and Ukraine from attacking each other’s energy facilities.

In a statement today Ukraine’s Defence Minister Rustem Umerov said his country agreed to “ensure safe navigation, eliminate the use of force, and prevent the use of commercial vessels for military purposes in the Black Sea.”

The deal follows three days of talks in Saudi Arabia the US and, separately, Russia and Ukraine.

Mr Umerov added that Kiev will regard the movement of any Russian military vessels outside of the eastern Black Sea as a violation of the spirit of this agreement.

“In this case Ukraine will have full right to exercise right to self-defence.”

The statement also said the US and Ukraine will continue working towards a “durable and lasting peace” and welcomes the assistance of third countries to support the implementation of maritime and energy agreements.

The US said it will continue facilitating negotiations to end the war.

The deal appears to mark a revival of a 2022 agreement to ensure safe transit via Ukraine’s Black Sea ports that was brokered by the United Nations and Turkey and was halted by Russia the following year.

Russia then said the agreement failed to ensure safety of its Black Sea exports.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in televised comments today that Moscow is open to the revival of the agreement but that Russian interests must be protected.

The White House said the US “will help restore Russia’s access to the world market for agricultural and fertiliser exports, lower maritime insurance costs, and enhance access to ports and payment systems for such transactions.”

The move opens the door to continued talks towards a more comprehensive ceasefire deal – including “peacekeeping” once the fighting stops.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov again repeated Moscow’s view today that this was not a role that could be carried out by the Europeans – as British Prime Minister Keir Starmer appears to be suggesting.

Mr Lavrov said: “With every day those dreamers have been proving their complete political impotence.”