Russia ships more grain from Ukraine amid export accord confusion

Name: Putin U-turn allows safe passage for Ukrainian grain just days after exports were blocked
Uploaded: 2023-03-16T22:13:34.000Z
Duration: 1 min 55 s
Description: Putin U-turn allows safe passage for Ukrainian grain just days after exports were blocked

Russia said on Thursday that the deal, set to expire on Sunday, would be extended for 60 days. A UN spokesman said no agreement had been reached

The deal, which allows grain exports to leave three Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea, is seen as key to stopping a rise in global food prices

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A grain terminal in the sea port in Odesa, Ukraine in August. Photo: Reuters

dpa

Published: 6:13am, 17 Mar 2023

The fate of efforts to extend a UN-brokered agreement to allow exports of Ukrainian grain across the Black Sea remained unclear on Thursday, with the deal set to expire on Sunday.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that the deal would be extended for 60 days. But a United Nations spokesman disputed that, saying talks continue and no agreement had been reached.

The deal, which allows grain exports to leave three Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea, is seen as key to stopping a rise in global food prices.

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Putin U-turn allows safe passage for Ukrainian grain just days after exports were blocked

In the midst of the dispute, Russia again exported grain by ship from the occupied Ukrainian territories, which was been denounced by Ukraine as an illegal export of Ukrainian grain.

Wheat was exported via the port city of Berdyansk on the Sea of Azov, the Ukrainian general staff announced in its evening report on Thursday. A loaded Russian barge was guided out of the port by several tugboats.

Some 2 million tons of grain are expected to be exported by ship and rail from the Russian-controlled part of the region. Half a million tons are planned for domestic consumption.

Large parts of the arable land in the Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions in southern Ukraine were conquered by Russia more than a year ago. Since this is Ukrainian territory, Kyiv argues, it misses out on important export revenues when Russia exports and sells the grain that is grown in Ukraine.