The “Grain Agreement” remains valid despite the statement of the Russia – UN

The United Nations does not believe that Russia’s suspension of participation in the “grain agreement” means that it has lost its validity, and UN inspectors will continue to inspect ships transporting grain from Ukrainian ports.

Martin Griffiths, Deputy Secretary General of the Organization for Humanitarian Affairs, said this to journalists at a briefing after the meeting of the UN Security Council.

“We firmly adhere to the opinion that the Black Sea Grain Initiative remains in force, despite the suspension of Russia’s participation in it,” he emphasized.

“Russia has not terminated the grain agreement and has not withdrawn from it. They have stated that they have suspended participation in it indefinitely. And as a result of this, we continue to direct ships that are moving (from Ukraine) through this initiative; along with Turkey, where possible, and with Ukraine to check these vessels,” Griffiths added.

At the same time, the UN Deputy Secretary General added that the Organization, as a mediator, continues to interact with the Russian side in order to resolve the issues raised by it. “The sooner we can fully restore Russia’s participation, the better,” he said.

Earlier, the Permanent Representative of Russia to the United Nations Vasilii Nebyenzia stated that Moscow will not recognize the agreements regarding the export of grain from Ukraine without its participation.

It will be recalled that on October 29, Russia announced that it was suspending participation in the implementation of the “grain agreement” allegedly because of the “terrorist attack” in the Sevastopol Bay on Saturday morning. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation stated that the targets of the attack in the Sevastopol Bay were ships of the Black Sea Fleet, which were allegedly involved in ensuring the security of the grain corridor.

As the EP wrote in its article, the “grain agreement” can work even without the participation of the Russian side, if it is the will of Turkish President Erdogan, and the implementation of this scenario has already begun.

Tags: Ukraine, export, grain