Russia has announced the end of the Black Sea Grain Agreement, but Ukraine is determined to continue exporting grain through the Black Sea.
Russia then made comments that could be interpreted as a threat.
[Dmitry Peskov/Kremlin spokesman:] “Without proper security guarantees, certain risks may arise. If we do anything without Russia, we have to take these risks into account.”]
The end of the security agreement means that grain ships could be attacked by someone in the Black Sea.
It means that shipping Ukrainian grain is now a big risk.
For the second day in a row, Russia launched massive air strikes on the port of Odessa, Ukraine’s largest grain export port, yesterday.
[Jim McCormick/Agricultural Market Expert: “When Russia launches a missile, it’s essentially an attack on that port (Odessa), and insurers are now going to reassess whether they’re willing to insure ships going to a war zone.”]
International grain prices are reacting sensitively.
Staple grains such as wheat, corn, and soybeans are trading up more than 3%.
Amid international criticism that it is weaponizing food, Russia has set conditions for returning to the grain agreement, including returning its agricultural bank to the international banking payment system and resuming exports of its own food and fertilizer.
Meanwhile, 카지노사이트넷 a fire broke out at a military training center in Russia-occupied Crimea, following a massive explosion triggered by a Ukrainian airstrike.
This led to the evacuation of more than 2,000 residents and the closure of a major highway, foreign media reported.
Fighting is expected to intensify in the region for some time as Ukraine retaliates against Russia’s air strikes in response to the Crimean bridge explosion.
I’m Kim Gui-Soo for KBS News in Berlin.