Russia wants Ukraine’s commitment that it will not use the corridors for exporting grain in the Black Sea for military purposes, after having suspended involvement in the negotiated agreement with the mediation of Turkey and the United Nations due to an attack on its fleet. in Crimea. The US considers the Russian demand a “collective extortion and punishment” for those who depend on grain. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pledged after speaking with UN Secretary General António Guterres to fulfill his part of the agreement and continue to be a “guarantor of global food security”.
Russia’s decision to drop the deal was taken on Saturday, after what it said was a massive attack on its fleet with “maritime drones” – said to have been launched from a ship carrying Ukrainian grain. Kiev speaks on a “false pretext”. This Monday, ships with grain continued to use the maritime corridor that was created to allow their export, but the Kremlin warned that it will be “dangerous” to continue to apply the agreement without Moscow’s involvement.
“Under current conditions, there can be no doubt of ensuring the safety of any object in the area until the Ukrainian side accepts additional obligations not to use this route for military purposes,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement. It calls on the UN to “get assurances from Ukraine that they will not use humanitarian corridors and designated Ukrainian ports for the export of agricultural products in hostile acts against Russia.”
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