Russia pulls out of Ukrainian grain deal after attack on its Black Sea fleet | International

Russia will once again block the shipping of Ukrainian grain. The Russian authorities have justified the suspension this Saturday of the pact signed with kyiv on July 22 with which its Black Sea Fleet had been the object hours before of an attack in the port of Sevastopol, on the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, annexed by Russia. in 2014. Moscow warns that it will no longer guarantee the safe navigation of transport ships, and escalates its escalation against London: it not only accuses the United Kingdom of having participated in the execution of this drone attack, but also of blowing up of the Nord Stream gas pipeline in September.

“The Ukrainian armed forces, under cover of the corridor created for the implementation of the Black Sea Initiative to export agricultural products, they launched massive air and sea attacks with unmanned aerial vehicles against the ships and infrastructure of the Russian Black Sea fleet,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Both that department and the Ministry of Defense denounced, without providing any further information, that “British experts participated” in the attack and, as a result of the bombing, “the safety of grain transport can no longer be guaranteed.”

The grain agreement has been, along with the prisoner swap deals, the only compromise reached by Moscow and kyiv since Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to start the offensive on February 24. Both parties announced this Saturday an exchange of 50 detainees.

The Istanbul pact of last July 22 established that Ukraine would recover the departure of its ships to the sea under the escort of Turkish warships to unlock up to 22 million tons of grain. In addition, the Kremlin and the UN signed a memorandum to facilitate the export of its food and fertilizers, key to world agriculture since Russia is the largest international exporter. Vladimir Putin prohibited its sale outside the country in response to the sanctions on his country, especially banks and logistics companies, at the beginning of the war.

“We do not see results with the memorandum, it is a fact,” warned the spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, María Zajárova, on October 27. “The agreement is a package, and all its parts must be implemented,” she added before warning that Moscow had yet to make a decision on the extension of these pacts after November 18.

As soon as it became known that Russia was suspending the grain agreement, Moscow assured that it can completely substitute Ukrainian cereals for its own. “Our country is ready to supply up to half a million tons of grain to the poorest countries for free in the next four months. We will do this with the participation of our trusted partner, Turkey,” Agriculture Minister Dmitri Patrushev told Rossiya 24 channel.

Bombing in Crimea

The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed at noon that its fleet stationed in Crimea had been attacked by at least nine drones, although the assault “was repelled” and only one trawler was slightly damaged. kyiv, for its part, declined to comment on the bombing, just as on previous occasions it did not comment on other attacks, such as those perpetrated against several air bases and ammunition depots on the peninsula.

Russian authorities accused London this Saturday of being behind several serious incidents, including the bombing of Crimea. According to the Moscow version, “UK Navy specialists who trained the Ukrainian 73rd Special Maritime Operations Center for the Sevastopol attack were involved in the blowing up of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines on 26 December. September”.

The UK denied these allegations. “To downplay its disastrous illegal invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry is peddling false claims on an epic scale,” the British Ministry of Defense tweeted.

The Black Sea fleet already starred in another chapter of the war in April, when its flagship, the Moskva missile cruiser, was sunk. The Russian Defense Ministry has repeatedly denied that it had been targeted by Ukrainian missiles.

“Nothing has been damaged in the city. Keep calm. The situation is under control. All response means are on alert,” Sevastopol Governor Mikhail Razvozhayev said on social media on Saturday.

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