The Kremlin yesterday said it was exiting a major agreement allowing grain exports from Ukraine hours after drones struck Russia’s only bridge connecting its mainland to the annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Moscow said the deadly Kerch Bridge attack had nothing to do with its withdrawal and for months has complained about the implementation of the pact, which was designed to ease fears of food shortages in vulnerable countries.
“The grain deal has ceased. As soon as the Russian part [of the agreements] are fulfilled, the Russian side will immediately return to the grain deal,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that the move was not linked to the strike.
Photo: Crimea24TV / AFP
The announcement came hours after drones struck the sole road link connecting Russia to the annexed peninsula, a key supply line for Russian forces resupplying frontlines in the south of Ukraine.
Kyiv’s navy and SBU security service carried out a “special operation” using seaborne drones, an SBU source said.
Russian authorities said a civilian couple was killed and their daughter wounded in the attack on the bridge, which was also damaged last year in a blast that Moscow blamed on Kyiv.
Over the past year, the Black Sea Grain Initiative has enabled the export in cargo of more than 32 million tonnes of Ukrainian grain, but those transports have come to a halt because of Russia’s refusal so far to renew the deal.
“The applications have not been approved by all parties,” the Joint Coordination Centre (JCC), which oversees the agreement, said in a statement. “No new ships have been approved to participate since 27 June.”
Putin just last week signaled Russia’s intention to terminate the agreement saying Moscow’s interests were being ignored under the deal brokered by the UN and Turkey.
Despite the Kremlin’s statements, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared optimistic about the prospects of the grain deal being maintained.
“I think that despite today’s statement, my friend Putin wants to continue the agreement” that allows the export of Ukrainian grain to the Black Sea.
However, Putin has repeatedly threatened to pull out of the agreement, saying that elements of the deal allowing the export of Russian food and fertilizers have not been honored.
China and Turkey are the main beneficiaries of the grain shipments, as well as developed economies, JCC data showed
The deal has helped the World Food Programme bring relief to countries facing critical food shortages such as Afghanistan, Sudan and Yemen.
GEARING UP: An invasion would be difficult and would strain China’s forces, but it has conducted large-scale training supporting an invasion scenario, the report said China increased its military pressure on Taiwan last year and took other steps in preparation for a potential invasion, an annual report published by the US Department of Defense on Wednesday showed. “Throughout 2023, Beijing continued to erode longstanding norms in and around Taiwan by employing a range of pressure tactics against Taiwan,” the report said, which is titled “Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China (PRC) 2024.” The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) “is preparing for a contingency to unify Taiwan with the PRC by force, if perceived as necessary by Beijing, while simultaneously deterring, delaying or denying
PEACEFUL RESOLUTION: A statement issued following a meeting between Australia and Britain reiterated support for Taiwan and opposition to change in the Taiwan Strait Canada should support the peaceful resolution of Taiwan’s destiny according to the will of Taiwanese, Canadian lawmakers said in a resolution marking the second anniversary of that nation’s Indo-Pacific strategy on Monday. The Canadian House of Commons committee on Canada-Chinese relations made the comment as part of 34 recommendations for the new edition of the strategy, adding that Ottawa should back Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations. Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, first published in October 2022, emphasized that the region’s security, trade, human rights, democracy and environmental protection would play a crucial role in shaping Canada’s future. The strategy called for Canada to deepen
TECH CONFERENCE: Input from industry and academic experts can contribute to future policymaking across government agencies, President William Lai said Multifunctional service robots could be the next new area in which Taiwan could play a significant role, given its strengths in chip manufacturing and software design, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) chairman and chief executive C.C. Wei (魏哲家) said yesterday. “In the past two months, our customers shared a lot of their future plans with me. Artificial intelligence [AI] and AI applications were the most talked about subjects in our conversation,” Wei said in a speech at the National Science and Technology Conference in Taipei. TSMC, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, counts Nvidia Corp, Advanced Micro Devices Inc, Apple Inc and
QUICK LOOK: The amendments include stricter recall requirements and Constitutional Court procedures, as well as a big increase in local governments’ budgets Portions of controversial amendments to tighten requirements for recalling officials and Constitutional Court procedures were passed by opposition lawmakers yesterday following clashes between lawmakers in the morning, as Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) members tried to block Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators from entering the chamber. Parts of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法) and Constitutional Court Procedure Act (憲法訴訟法) passed the third reading yesterday. The legislature was still voting on various amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) as of press time last night, after the session was extended to midnight. Amendments to Article 4
RSS