La Russia announced that it will not prolong the agreement that a year ago made it possible to resume the grain exports from Ukraine. The agreement, brokered by Turkey and the UN, has been repeatedly extended for short periods and expired today.
"As soon as the Russian side of the agreements is satisfied, Russia will immediately return to the implementation of the agreement," said the spokesman of Putin. The Kremlin claims that alleged "obstacles" to Russian exports of grains and fertilizers have not been removed.
The attack on the Crimean bridge
In reality, the halt to the agreement was announced just a few hours after the attack on the bridge Crimea, considered important for supplying Russian troops deployed in the occupied Ukrainian territories and already damaged in a raid last October. “Moscow's decision not to extend the agreement on the export of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea it is definitive and no further talks are planned,” Russian news agency Tass said, quoting a senior Moscow official at the UN.
On the other side, Ukraine responds that it is ready to continue exports despite the interruption of the agreement, Ukrainian president said Volodymyr Zelensky.
Cardinal Zuppi has left for Washington. He will stay there until Wednesday
Meanwhile, the Holy See announces that starting today 17 July and until 19 July, Cardinal Matteo Maria Soups, Archbishop of Bologna and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, will be in Washington accompanied by an Official of the Secretariat of State, as Envoy of the Holy Father Francis". "The visit - explains the Vatican - takes place in the context of the mission aimed at promoting peace in Ukraine and aims to exchange ideas and opinions on the current tragic situation and to support humanitarian initiatives to alleviate the suffering of the most affected and most fragile, especially children".
The allegations of Putin's investigators
- Russian detectives accuse the Ukrainian special services of what they call "a terrorist act" and, according to Tass, suspect that two drones were used. Kiev does not openly admit to being behind the attack, but has released a statement that does not dismiss the suspects, saying that "all the details regarding the explosion will be announced after the victory". Furthermore, sources cited by the BBC and France-Presse claim that the Ukrainian services are responsible for the attack.
The Kremlin claims there is no correlation between the attack on the bridge and the disruption of the wheat deal. After all, already in recent days, Putin had raised the possibility of not renewing the agreement, which however often in the past had been renewed at the last moment. Moscow had already briefly stopped participating in the deal at the end of October last year, i.e. after a drone attack on its fleet in the Crimea.
The Ukrainian ports have been at a standstill since the beginning of the invasion of Russian troops until the summer of last year, when the grain deal allowed to lift the blockade with which Moscow is accused. Both Ukraine and Russia are important exporters of cereals and the agreement was also signed in order to alleviate the global food crisis.
"Firm condemnation" by the European Commission
From the European Commission, President Ursula von der Leyen immediately tweeted: “I strongly condemn Russia's cynical move to end the Black Sea grain initiative, despite the efforts of the United Nations and Turkey”.
“The EU is working to ensure food security for vulnerable people around the world. EU solidarity corridors will continue to bring agri-food products from Ukraine to global markets,” von der Leyen added.
