Ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, 2012. Image: function.mil.ru, CC BY-SA 4.0
End of Grain Deal with Ukraine: Black Sea Sabers Rattle, Oxfam Scandalous Figures
Zelenskyy convenes NATO-Ukraine Council, Stoltenberg has no comment
Oxfam: Grain deal ‘no solution to global hunger’
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Russian secret service claims to have found traces of explosives in grain ship, Zelenskyy appeals to NATO. Both sides threaten. Development experts see the deal as a failure.
After the end of the grain agreement between Ukraine and Russia, the situation in the Black Sea remains tense.
Announcement
After Russian drones partially destroyed a grain warehouse in the port city of Odessa, according to Ukrainian sources, new accusations against Ukraine have come from Moscow: the government and army, they say, misused grain ships to transport weapons. Russia flanked the cancellation of the deal with clear threats as well as threatening military gestures.
reading tip: Russia suspends grain deals: what are the consequences now?
Kiev’s government said it would target ships in the Black Sea calling at Russian or Russian-controlled ports. Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tried to motivate NATO to become more involved.
The Black Sea Grain Initiative was negotiated between Russia and Ukraine in July 2022 to continue to secure Ukraine’s grain exports and prevent famine, especially in countries of the Global South. The first seems to have been achieved, the second is denied.
Turkey and the United Nations brokered the deal. Turkey has agreed to inspect grain ships using an agreed secure route for possible arms smuggling.
Reading Tip: Ukrainian farmers in peril: How Russia and the EU are threatening crops
Announcement
After the agreed deadline, however, Russia has now rejected an extension. Since then, the situation has deteriorated on several levels. The deal allowed Ukraine to export about 33 million tonnes of grain and other foodstuffs despite the war last year. But Russia would also have benefited from a sequel, wrote Russia expert and Telepolis author Roland Bathon.
With the alleged discovery of traces of explosives, Russia reinforces the accusation that Ukraine is using grain carriers to transport weapons. The remains of explosives would have been discovered on a corresponding barge, Russian domestic secret service FSB said on Monday.
The ship was on its way from Turkey to the port of Rostov-on-Don on the Sea of Azov to load grain, Russian intelligence said. In May, the ship was in the port of Kilija, Ukraine. Earlier this month, while in Tusla, Turkey, the ship changed its name and replaced the crew, which consisted of 12 Ukrainians. The information has not been verified by independent experts.
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