The United States urges Russia to return to the Ukrainian grain export agreement

The United States urged Russia to return to the Ukrainian grain export agreement and accused the Kremlin of instrumentalizing food in the war.

Russia’s decision to withdraw from the pact, negotiated by the United Nations, has a “direct impact on low-income countries (…) and on food prices globally”, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement sent late on Saturday.

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Russia decided on Saturday to suspend the agreement that allowed the export of grain from Ukraine through the Black Sea after an attack on its fleet in the port of Sevastopol.

US President Joe Biden also criticized the action of Vladimir Putin’s government, assuring that Russia has no reason to make that decision, which he described as “outrageous”.

“It will increase hunger”, the president stressed to a group of reporters in Delaware.

Russia said on Sunday that before talking about a possible return to the agreement, all the circumstances of Saturday’s attack by the Russian Black Sea Fleet must be clarified.

For its part, the Ukrainian government reported that the suspension of the agreement has resulted in the blocking of 176 ships that had already sailed from Ukrainian ports, but maintained that in September Russia began deliberately slowing down the operation of the corridor to hinder the agreement.

More than 8 million metric tons of food have been transported through the agreement, which was signed in Istanbul last July, according to UN data.

Source: Elcomercio

Ronald Payne

I, Ronald Payne, am a journalist and author who dedicated his life to telling the stories that need to be said. I have over 7 years of experience as a reporter and editor, covering everything from politics to business to crime.