On Monday, Russia said it was suspending its participation in a crucial deal that allowed the export of Ukrainian grain, once again raising fears over global food supplies.
The agreement, brokered by Turkiye and the United Nations in July 2022, was officially set to expire on Monday.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russia would not renew the pact right now, saying it “has been terminated.”
Russia had complained for some time that it was being prevented from properly exporting its own food, and Peskov cited this objection as a reason for withdrawing from the deal.
“As soon as the Russian part is completed, the Russian side will return to the implementation of this deal immediately,” he told reporters.
Over the weekend, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the main objective of the agreement — supplying grain to countries in need — had "not been realized," and again complained that Russia faced hurdles in exporting its food.
Peskov left the door open for a future revival of the deal, saying Russia would comply "once the Russian part (of the deal) is completed".
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last week accused Russia of using the grain deal “as a weapon.” And Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told CBS on Monday that “Russia is slowly killing the grain initiative, from one stretch to the next."
“Prices for grain all across the world will go up, and people in the most vulnerable regions of Asia, Africa, will feel it,” he noted.
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