Putin acknowledged return to grain deal with conditions

President Vladimir Putin assured this Wednesday that Russia is ready to return to an agreement on the export of Ukrainian cereals if its requests are met “in full”, and without which its extension “no longer makes sense.”

“We will consider returning [ao acordo]but on one condition: if all the principles of Russia’s participation in this agreement are taken into account and implemented without exception and in full,” Putin said during a televised meeting of the government.

This week, Russia decided to suspend an agreement on the export of Ukrainian grains after months of criticism of the agreed text and claims that its supplies of agricultural products and fertilizers are blocked by sanctions.

Moscow is demanding the reintegration of its agricultural bank Rosselkhozbank into the SWIFT international banking system, the lifting of sanctions on spare parts for agricultural machinery, the unblocking of transport logistics and insurance, and the unfreezing of assets.

He also intends to restart the gigantic pipeline linking the Russian city of Tolyatti with Odessa, designed to export ammonia, a crucial ingredient in fertilizers. This structure, out of order since the beginning of the conflict, was damaged by an explosion on June 5, for which Moscow blamed Kiev.

At the same time, the Kremlin leader accused the Westerners of using the grain export agreement as an instrument of “political blackmail”.

“Instead of helping countries really in need, the West used the grain agreement for political blackmail and turned it into a tool for enriching transnational corporations, speculators in the world market,” he said during the meeting.

According to Putin, the grain deal has caused Russian farmers losses estimated at $1.2 billion (about 1 billion euros) and reduced the profitability of exports.

“Our country is able to replace Ukrainian grain both commercially and free of charge,” Putin continued, predicting a “record harvest” in 2023.

The agreement signed in the summer of 2022 in Istanbul by Ukraine and Russia, mediated by the UN and Turkey, concerns Ukrainian grains and the export of Russian fertilizers and food products.

According to the UN, since the entry into force of the agreement, about 33 million tons of grain have been shipped from the ports of southern Ukraine.

The ongoing Russian military offensive into Ukraine, launched on February 24 last year, has plunged Europe into its worst security crisis since World War II (1939-1945).

Ukraine’s Western allies have been supplying Kyiv with weapons and enacting successive packages of sanctions against Russian interests to try to reduce Moscow’s ability to fund the war effort.