Russia blocks 2M tons of grain on 176 vessels already at sea: Top Ukrainian diplomat

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - By suspending its participation in the grain deal, Russia has blocked the export of two million tons of grain on board 176 ships that are already at sea, the Ukrainian foreign minister expressed on Sunday.

“By suspending its participation in the grain deal on a false pretext of explosions 220 kilometers away from the grain corridor, Russia blocks 2 million tons of grain on 176 vessels already at sea — enough to feed over 7 million people. Russia has planned this well in advance,” Dmytro Kuleba said on Twitter.

“The current queue with grain has accumulated in the Black Sea since September, when Russia started deliberately delaying the functioning of the corridor and seeking to undermine the deal. Russia took the decision to resume its hunger games long ago and now tries to justify it,” he added.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused Ukraine of disrupting the grain deal in order to “complement food to the nuclear blackmail.”

On Saturday, Russia announced that it suspended its participation in the deal to export Ukrainian grain, following attacks on its Black Sea Fleet.

Türkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed an agreement on July 22 in Istanbul to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which were paused after the Russia-Ukraine war began in February. A Joint Coordination Center with officials from the three countries and the UN has been set up in Istanbul to oversee the shipments.