Moscow has announced that it is suspending its participation in the agreement for the export of grain through the Black Sea from Ukrainian ports, alleging that the commitments with the Russian side have not been fulfilled, and ensures that it will resume participation when such conditions are met.
War and heat stress food prices in international markets
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“The grain agreement is suspended,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said in his daily telephone press conference, according to the Russian state agency TASS. “In fact, the agreements on the Black Sea have ceased to be in force today. As the President of the Russian Federation said earlier, they expire on July 17. Unfortunately, the part that concerns Russia in this Black Sea agreement has not been fulfilled so far. Therefore, its validity is terminated.
The Kremlin spokesman assures that Moscow will resume “the application of the agreements on the Black Sea” as soon as “the Russian part of the grain agreement is fulfilled.”
United Nations sources have confirmed to elDiario.es that the notification has been received in Istanbul.
This Monday was the last day of operation of the agreement signed a year ago before it expired at midnight, if Russia did not agree to extend it. In recent days, talks have been held against the clock and the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, sent a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin last week with a proposal to maintain the so-called Black Sea Grain Initiative.
The aim of such a proposal, according to Guterres’ spokesman, was to remove “obstacles affecting financial transactions” through the Russian Agricultural Bank, “one of the main concerns expressed” by Russia, while allowing the Ukrainian grain flow through the Black Sea.
The UN has warned that if they undo the agreements, it could lead to a likely increase in world prices for food and fertilizer.
33 million tons of cereals
The last ship traveling under cover of it left the port of Odessa early on Sunday, according to a witness from Reuters and MarineTraffic.com.
Russia had previously threatened to abandon the pact, arguing that its demands to improve its own grain and fertilizer exports have not been met. In the last year, Moscow agreed to extend it three times. In October, it briefly suspended its participation after an attack on its fleet in the Crimea.
On Friday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he expected his Russian counterpart to agree to extend the deal.
The pact, signed in July 2022 under the mediation of the UN and Ankara, has made it possible to safely export grain from Ukraine to international markets to avoid a global food crisis aggravated by the Russian invasion, after which prices soared. world.
Ukraine and Russia are among the world’s leading grain exporters.
Under the agreement, nearly 33 million metric tons of corn, wheat and other products have been exported, according to the UN.
According to the same source, taken together, the agreements have contributed to a sustained reduction in world food prices, which are now more than 23% below the all-time highs reached in March last year.
