Russia suspends its participation in the Ukrainian grain export agreement

On Saturday, Russia sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General telling him to formally withdraw from the Ukrainian grain export agreement, Reuters reported.

Russia announced the suspension of its participation in a United Nations-sponsored agreement to export grain from Ukrainian ports after the Russian fleet was targeted in the Central Sea of Crimea.

The Russian Defence Ministry was quoted by TASS as saying that Russia had suspended participation in the Ukrainian grain export agreement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin sought to limit countries that could receive shipments of the agreement under this agreement sponsored by Turkey and the United Nations and allowed the resumption of Ukraine’s grain exports that had been halted since the outbreak of the war last February.

Russia said earlier Friday that the poorest countries received only 3 percent of food exports under a U.N.-brokered agreement to transport grain from Ukrainian ports and that half of shipments went to Western countries.

Moscow said in a statement: “It has been found that the geographical location of the recipient countries of such shipments is totally inconsistent with previously stated humanitarian objectives.”

“The countries most in need, such as Somalia, Ethiopia, Yemen, Sudan and Afghanistan, received only three percent of food, mostly from the World Food Programme.”

Since Russia and Ukraine signed the United Nations-supported Black Sea Grain Initiative, Ukraine has exported millions of tons of corn, wheat, sunspot, barley, rapeseed and soya.

The Russian President and Russian officials complained about problems with the agreement, raising fears that Moscow would withdraw from it unless its demands were implemented.

Western officials familiar with the grain talks said any supply to global markets from Ukraine was one of the world’s largest grain exporters easing the food crisis.