Moscow says it is halting its participation in a grain deal from Ukraine that has brought down global food prices, blaming an alleged Ukrainian drone strike on its fleet of ships in the Black Sea.
Under the agreement, brokered by the United Nations, more than 9 million tonnes of grain were exported, easing food supply shortages across the world.
The Russian defence ministry said the country would suspend implementation of the agreement, claiming Ukraine launched a “massive” aerial drone attack on its ships moored off the coast of occupied Crimea on Saturday.
Without providing evidence, Moscow also accused British troops of directing the alleged strike as well as separately blowing up gas pipelines last month. In response the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) said Russia was “peddling false claims of an epic scale”.
Ukraine’s ministry of defence declined to comment when approached by The Independent. However Ukrainian officials have denied the accusations. Andriy Yermak, the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, accused Russia of blackmail and “invented terror attacks” on its own territory following the explosions. Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said Moscow was using a “false pretext” to block the grain corridor.
The Russian defence ministry called it a “terrorist attack”. “The Russian side cannot guarantee the safety of civilian dry cargo ships participating in the ‘Black Sea Initiative’, and suspends its implementation from today for an indefinite period,” a statement read. The UN said it was in contact with Russian authorities about the decision.
“It is vital that all parties refrain from any action that would imperil the Black Sea grain initiative, which is a critical humanitarian effort that is clearly having a positive impact on access to food for millions of people around the world,” said spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
Moscow’s move came just a day after UN chief Antonio Guterres urged both Russia and Ukraine to renew the vital grain deal which was due to expire in November.
Mr Guterres had underlined the urgency of renewing the agreement to “cushion the suffering” of billions of people worldwide. He also urged other countries, mainly in the West, to expedite the removal of obstacles blocking Russian grain and fertiliser exports. Russia’s UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia has said that before Moscow discusses a renewal it “needs to see the export of its grain and fertilisers in the world market, which has never happened since the beginning of the deal”.
Earlier on Saturday, Ukraine and Russia presented differing versions on the Crimea drone attack in which at least one Russian ship suffered damage in Sevastopol, a major port located on the Ukrainian peninsula which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014. The Russian authorities claimed that Russian forces had “repelled” 16 drones and that a minesweeper had sustained “minor damage” during a pre-dawn attack on the port.
An adviser to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry claimed “careless handling of explosives” had caused blasts on four warships. Anton Gerashchenko wrote on Telegram that the vessels included a frigate, a landing ship and a ship that carried cruise missiles used in a deadly July attack on a western Ukrainian city. Adding to the confusion was unverified footage shared on Ukrainian Telegram channels which allegedly showed “drone boats” laden with explosives hitting the ships. The Independent was unable to verify either account.
