Ships of Russia’s Black Sea fleet are anchored in one of the bays of Sevastopol, Crimea, on March 31, 2014.
AP Photo, File
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AP Photo, File
Ships of Russia’s Black Sea fleet are anchored in one of the bays of Sevastopol, Crimea, on March 31, 2014.
AP Photo, File
MOSCOW – Russia says it is stopping participating in a United Nations-brokered agreement to secure Ukraine’s grain exports outside the Black Sea.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, Moscow will leave the grain deal for an “indefinite period”.
The move comes just hours after the Russian Defense Ministry announced it had repelled the majority of Ukrainian drone strikes against Russian ships in the Black Sea, which it said were aimed at protecting the country’s waters. agreed maritime route.
On Saturday, the US State Department condemned the move, saying the US regrets Russia’s decision to leave the deal.
“By suspending this agreement, Russia continues to weaponize food in the war it started, directly affecting low- and middle-income countries as well as global food prices, and at the same time exacerbating an already serious humanitarian crisis and food insecurity,” Foreign Minister Antony Blinken said in a statement.
Authorities in Kyiv accused Moscow of creating a “false pretext” to block the grain corridor.
In recent weeks, Russia has threatened to withdraw from the agreement because of complaints that the agreement opened Ukrainian grain shipments but failed to fulfill its promise to allow exports of fertilizer and food products. of Russia.
The United Nations has called on both sides to exercise restraint from a deal that feeds millions of people globally. More than 9 million tons of grain and other food products were exported under the agreement, contributing to lower prices of wheat and other commodities, UN says.
