Moscow broke the agreement to export Ukrainian grain and warned that ships heading to rival territory would be seen as a threat
The White House said on Wednesday (July 19, 2023) that Russia is considering attacking Ukrainian civilian ships in the Black Sea. Tensions in the region escalated on July 17 when Moscow suspended a deal to export Ukrainian grain.
“The Russian military could expand its targets to Ukrainian grain facilities and attack civilian ships,” Adam Hodge, spokesman for the White House National Security Council, told AFP.
“We believe this is a concerted effort to justify any attacks on civilian ships in the Black Sea and blame Ukraine for those attacks.”
Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry warned that all ships bound for Ukraine would be considered suppliers of military equipment to Kiev.
GRAIN EXPORT AGREEMENT
The Grain Export Agreement was signed on July 22 last year through the mediation of Turkey and the United Nations. It was renewed three times: in November last year, in March and in May this year.
The deal aims to prevent a global food crisis by allowing the reopening of southern Ukrainian ports occupied by the Russian army, freeing up the inflow of tons of grain from Ukraine. The blockade imposed at the beginning of the war caused food prices to rise around the world, increasing global scarcity and threatening food security.
On Monday (July 17) Russia withdrew from the agreement with Ukraine. Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement that the country would not consider resuming Ukraine’s grain exports across the Black Sea until there were “concrete results, not promises and guarantees” on Russia’s demands.
Since then, Russian forces have launched a series of attacks on ports in Ukraine.