The UN is trying to do everything to ensure “integrity” and extend the grain deal. According to TASS’s report, this was expressed by Stephane Dujarric, the representative of the World Organization’s Secretary General.
He declined to comment on Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin’s statement that Moscow is ready to extend the agreement by 60 days instead of 120 days.
I won’t go into details, more information will come from Geneva. “We are doing everything we can to ensure the integrity and extension of the agreement,” Dujarric told reporters at a briefing.
He added that a meeting of Russian and UN delegations has just ended in Geneva.
“I expect a full statement from Geneva before the end of the day,” said the representative of the UN Secretary-General.
Earlier, Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Vershinin said that the next round of consultations was held between the Russian delegation and representatives of the world organization. He added that Moscow is not against the extension of the second term of the grain agreement after its expiration on March 18, but only for an extension for 60 days.
“Remember that they [Стамбульские соглашения, «зерновая сделка»] “The Black Sea Initiative” on the export of raw materials for fertilizers, including Ukrainian food and ammonia, and the Russia-UN Memorandum of Understanding on the normalization of domestic agricultural exports,” Vershinin said.
According to him, the further position of the Russian Federation will depend on the “real progress in the supply of Russian products”, including payments, logistics, insurance, resolving the financial activities of the Russian Federation and resolving problems with supply. Ammonia via the Togliatti-Odessa pipeline.
The diplomat added that the sanctions exemptions promised by Western states are no longer “working”. Moscow points out that the condition for removing the barrier to Russia’s food and fertilizer exports has not been met.
The grain deal expired on November 18, but according to the terms, an automatic 120-day extension was possible if there was no objection from one of its participants.
The launch of the ammonia pipeline remains a stumbling block in the grain deal. As reported by the publication “Notebook”President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky said that he will approve the supply of ammonia from the Russian Federation to the port of Odessa during the prisoner exchange according to the formula “for all”.
The Ukrainian leader announced this on September 16. “I am against the supply of ammonia from the Russian Federation through our region. I will only do this in exchange for our prisoners,” he said. The Kremlin said the idea was inappropriate: “People and ammonia are the same thing?!” said Dmitry Peskov.
5 days later, on September 23, RTVI reported that on the day of the announcement of partial mobilization in Russia, one of the largest exchanges of prisoners of war with Ukraine took place – 55 Russian soldiers returned to their homeland in exchange for 215 Ukrainian soldiers. , including fighters of the Azov regiment captured during the siege of Azovstal in Mariupol (the organization is prohibited in Russia). Moscow also received Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuk, known as “Putin’s godfather”.
Private companies and the Russian budget are losing “billions of dollars” due to the inability to export raw materials and products, the British Financial Times reported.
The UN stressed that global markets need Russian fertilizers and ammonia for the 2023 crop.