In a sudden development, Russia announced on Monday it would no longer be participating in a significant UN-brokered agreement that allowed Ukrainian grain to be exported to the world through the Black Sea, a move that is bound to worsen the commodities crisis.
The deal, brokered by the United Nations and Turkey last July, aimed to alleviate a global food crisis by allowing Ukrainian grain blocked by the Russia-Ukraine conflict to be exported safely.
The last ship left Ukraine under the deal on Sunday. Russia’s February 2022 invasion and blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports sent global grain prices soaring. Ukraine and Russia are among the world’s top grain exporters. Meanwhile, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Monday that millions of people facing hunger will “pay the price” of Russia’s decision to exit the Ukraine grain deal.
He told reporters at the United Nations headquarters in New York that the move by Moscow will “strike a blow to people in need everywhere”.—Agencies
