Russia may pull out of a wartime deal that allows the export of Ukrainian grain to global markets if the West fails to remove obstacles to Russian agricultural exports, Moscow’s top diplomat suggested Friday.
The deal, which was brokered by the United Nations and Turkiye in July, unblocked shipments that were stuck in Ukraine’s blockaded and mined ports, alleviating rising food prices and threat of hunger in some countries.
A separate agreement aimed to facilitate the export of Russian fertilisers and grain. Moscow has repeatedly complained that the deal failed to work for Russian agricultural exports, which have had trouble reaching world markets due to Western sanctions.
Speaking at a joint news conference with his Turkish counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters that Russia agreed last month to extend the deal for 60 days — instead of the 120 days set under a previous extension — to send a warning signal to the West. “After we extended the deal for 120 days, we saw no indication that those issues could be solved and grew tired of appealing to the conscience of those who determine it,” Lavrov said of Moscow’s dissatisfaction.
“We made a small escalatory move and offered to extend the deal only for 60 days on the assumption that if there is no change in removing the obstacles to the exports of Russian fertilisers and grain, we would think whether the deal is needed,” he said.
Lavrov shrugged off the West’s argument that Russian food and fertilisers are not subject to sanctions. He noted that “obstacles related to financing, logistics, transportation and insurance of Russian exports have remained and even have grown tougher.”
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