Russia says Ukraine attacks on Black Sea Fleet jeopardise grain deal extension

The Russian Defence Ministry said on Tuesday that Ukraine’s attacks on the Black Sea Fleet jeopardised the extension of the grain deal, Anadolu News Agency reports.

Investigations into the recent attacks on Russia’s facilities revealed that Ukrainian unmanned vehicles launched these strikes from the port of Odessa, which is used for the implementation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the Ministry said in a statement.

The Ministry noted that the strikes were carried out on 23 March and 24 April, and that Ukraine used the humanitarian corridor, which is exclusively reserved for the purposes of the grain deal, to launch the drone attacks.

“The terrorist actions of the Kyiv regime threaten the next extension of the grain deal after 18 May,” the Ministry said.

In October last year, Russia suspended the implementation of the grain deal after Ukraine’s drone attacks on the Black Sea Fleet and civilian vessels which, according to the Ministry, were involved in ensuring the security of the “grain corridor”.

The agreement was renewed after receiving guarantees from Turkiye and written commitments from Ukraine not to use the humanitarian corridor and Ukrainian ports for military operations against the Russian Federation.

Turkiye, the UN, Russia and Ukraine signed a deal in Istanbul last July to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which were paused after the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022, exacerbating global food insecurity.

The coordination centre or Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) was set up in Istanbul to oversee the shipments with officials from the three countries and the UN.

READ: Russia downbeat on Black Sea grain deal as Kyiv tries to unblock exports