Topline
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday said he would not resume a deal with Ukraine to allow the grain giant to safely ship its products through the Black Sea unless Western countries meet his demands to facilitate Russian grain exports, threatening what U.S. officials have warned could amount to a global food crisis as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine prolongs.
A combine harvests wheat on a field in southern Ukraine.
Key Facts
Putin’s comments came in a meeting in Sochi, Russia, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan—who helped facilitate a deal last summer allowing Ukraine to export grain and had been pushing for a new deal after Russia terminated its previous deal with Ukraine in July.
Putin did not specify his exact demands from the West, though he told Erdogan he was “open to negotiations” on a grain deal, according to a translation by the Associated Press.
Talks to restore the countries’ grain deal had stalled over the past month, with diplomats from Russia and Turkey failing to reach an agreement in a round of talks last week, and after United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres pleaded with Russian officials last week for a new agreement, telling reporters, “we have some concrete solutions” to address Russia’s concerns about the deal—Russia had complained the previous deal unfairly benefitted richer countries and that Russia still faced difficulties shipping its fertilizer and grain.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov had said in July that Russia would “promptly return” to the deal, but only “as soon as the Russian part” of the agreement is fulfilled,” Russian outlet TASS reported.
Russia has also blamed a slew of economic sanctions from the West on its ability to export its own grain, claiming those exports are impeded by sanctions on shipping and transport—grain is not explicitly sanctioned.
Tangent
Hours before Putin’s meeting with Erdogan, Russian forces carried out an attack in Ukraine’s Odesa region, on the Black Sea, damaging warehouses, agricultural equipment and grain production facilities, Odesa Regional Military head Oleg Kiper told the New York Times.
Key Background
Officials in Ukraine–known as Europe’s breadbasket–had pleaded for a deal allowing it to export barley, wheat, sunflower oil and other grains through the Black Sea after Russia’s invasion in February 2022, and after Russia’s Navy imposed a blockade along the Black Sea, reportedly stranding more than 25 million tons of grain inside the country. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned last summer that without an agreement, Russia’s blockade could spark famine and mass migration, while food price data from the United Nations revealed its food price index soared to a record high, averaging 143.7 points last year, an increase of 14.3% since 2021.
Further Reading
Russia Terminates Key Grain Deal With Ukraine—Threatening Global Food Supply (Forbes)
Putin’s Message: You Can Get Your Grain From Russia, Not From Ukraine (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/09/04/putin-refuses-new-ukraine-grain-deal-unless-west-meets-russias-shipping-demands/