Russia has announced that it will not extend the international agreement allowing the safe shipment of Ukrainian grain through its ports in the Black Sea.
This agreement, which is set to expire on Monday evening, has been credited with helping to control food prices worldwide following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. Both countries are major players in the global agricultural industry.
Since the Black Sea Grain Initiative was brokered by the United Nations and Turkey a year ago, nearly 33 million metric tonnes of grain have been exported.
The Kremlin stated on Monday that Russia would immediately rejoin the agreement if its demands to enhance its own grain and fertilizer exports are met.
The global food crisis and skyrocketing inflation were triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity, Russia and Ukraine were the world’s top and fifth largest wheat exporters respectively in 2021, prior to the war.
Article from www.aljazeera.com