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GENEVA, June 10 The decision on whether or not to extend the Istanbul grain agreement will be made only on the basis of Russia's interests, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin told Russian journalists following the talks with the UN in Geneva.
“I think that in any circumstances we should be guided by a clear understanding of the interests of the Russian side. Therefore, this is what we will be guided by,” he answered the question of whether Russia intends to extend the grain deal after July 18, if nothing changes.
On June 9, Geneva hosted a new round of talks between Russia, represented by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin, and the UN, represented by UNCTAD Secretary General Rebecca Greenspan, on a memorandum within the framework of a grain deal.
The Black Sea Grain Initiative, which was signed on July 22, 2022 by representatives of Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the UN, involves the export of Ukrainian grain, food and fertilizer across the Black Sea from three ports, including Odessa. The coordination of vessel traffic is handled by the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul. Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed out in September that the West exports most of the Ukrainian grain to its own states, and not to needy countries in Africa.
The grain initiative is an integral part of the package agreement. The second part — the Russia-UN memorandum, designed for three years — provides for the unblocking of Russian exports of food and fertilizers, among the main tasks was the reconnection of the Russian Agricultural Bank to SWIFT, the resumption of supplies of agricultural machinery, spare parts and services, the restoration of the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline and a number of other measures. As noted in Moscow, this part of the package agreement has not yet been implemented.