Despite the best efforts of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Russia has decided not to renew the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Ergogan was in Sochi yesterday to meet with his counterpart, Vladimir Putin, with the resumption of Black Sea grain exports top of the agenda. The Russian president remained adamant however that the West has yet to agree to further demands Moscow has been calling for to renew the shipping pact which came to an end in July.
Putin said instead his country was ready to work with Qatar and Turkey to transport grains to many African countries.
“We are close to completing agreements with six African states, where we intend to supply foodstuffs for free and even carry out delivery and logistics for free,” Putin said.
Tensions have built in and around the Black Sea since Russia quit the United Nations-backed shipping pact six weeks ago, with Russia mounting attacks on Ukrainian export hubs and Kyiv’s forces targeting Moscow’s naval ports and warships.
Ukrainian railways have partially restricted cargo shipments to Ukraine’s major Danube River port Izmail, which has been the target of Russian drone attacks in recent weeks.
The Danube has become Ukraine’s main route for exporting grain since July, but facilities have been pounded hard by Russian drones. The Russian attacks and the de facto blockading of Ukraine’s seaports have crimped exports.
Clarksons Research noted in a report published on Friday that Ukraine shipped just 1.1m tonnes of grain by sea last month, compared to 3.5m tonnes in May when the UN shipping pact was still in full swing.
