Russia pulls out of Ukraine grain deal

Moscow [Russia], July 17 (ANI): Russia has said it is suspending its participation in a deal that allowed the export of Ukrainian grain, CNN reported.
The agreement, brokered by Turkey and the United Nations in July 2022, was officially set to expire at 5 pm on Monday (midnight local time in Istanbul, Kyiv, and Moscow).
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Monday told reporters that Russia would not renew the pact right now, saying it “has been terminated.”
Russia has for some time complained that it is being prevented from adequately exporting its own foodstuffs, and Peskov cited the objection as the reason for pulling out of the deal.
Peskov told reporters: “As soon as the Russian part is completed, the Russian side will return to the implementation of this deal.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin over the weekend said that the main objective of the deal, supplying grain to countries in need, “has not been realized,” again complaining that Russia faced obstacles exporting its own food.
As per CNN, Peskov left the door open to reviving the deal in the future, saying that Russia will comply “as soon as 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.”
The food deal allowed Ukraine to export grain by sea, with ships bypassing a Russian blockade of the country’s Black Sea ports and navigating safe passage through the waterway to Turkey’s Bosphorus Strait in order to reach global markets.
Vessels were inspected before they arrived in Ukraine by Russian, Ukrainian and Turkish officials, to ensure weapons were not being smuggled into Ukraine.
It proved vital for stabilizing global food prices and bringing relief to the developing countries which rely on Ukrainian exports. The impact of the war on global food markets was immediate and extremely painful, especially because Ukraine is a major supplier of grain to the World Food Programme (WFP), according to CNN. (ANI)