UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Russia to resume the safe export of Ukrainian grain across the Black Sea, in accordance with a proposal he presented to President Vladimir Putin. Russia withdrew from the agreement last week, citing unmet demands to improve its own food and fertilizer exports, as well as insufficient Ukrainian grain reaching the neediest nations under the Black Sea deal.
“With the termination of the Black Sea Initiative, the most vulnerable will pay the highest price,” Guterres emphasized at the U.N. Food Systems summit in Rome. “When food prices rise, everybody pays for it.”
Since Russia’s withdrawal from the agreement and subsequent attacks on Ukrainian food-exporting ports in the Black Sea and Danube river regions, global wheat and corn futures have skyrocketed. “This is especially devastating for vulnerable countries struggling to feed their people,” Guterres remarked.
On July 11, Guterres sent a final appeal to Putin to salvage the deal. He proposed an extension with a daily limit of four ships traveling to and from Ukraine, on the condition that a subsidiary of Russia’s Agricultural Bank, Rosselkhozbank, be connected to the SWIFT global payments system.
One of Moscow’s key demands has been the reconnection of Rosselkhozbank to SWIFT, as it was cut off by the European Union in June 2022. “I call on the Russian Federation to return to the implementation of the Black Sea Initiative, in line with my latest proposal,” Guterres pleaded. “I urge the global community to stand united for effective solutions in this essential effort.”
The Black Sea grain deal, brokered by the U.N. and Turkey a year ago, was aimed at mitigating a global food crisis worsened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Ukraine and Russia are both significant grain exporters. While Russia’s grain exports have increased since the conflict, its ammonia and potassium-based fertilizer exports have plummeted.
“I remain determined to facilitate unhindered access to global markets for food products and fertilizers from both Ukraine and the Russian Federation, and to deliver the food security that every person deserves,” Guterres declared.
(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
Credit: The Star : News Feed
