MOSCOW, March 14. /TASS/. The grain deal has been extended for 60 days on previous terms, and it has also been confirmed as a package agreement, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told TASS on Tuesday.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov referred to the extension of the deal as a gesture on Russia’s part when speaking with journalists, stating that the UN failed "to break through the blank wall" of the collective West regarding the issue of lifting restrictions for Russian exports.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said after respective consultations in Geneva that Moscow would decide on further extension of the deal relying on how agreements with the UN on removing obstacles for Russian exports were fulfilled. Russia has repeatedly stressed that this part of the deal is not implemented.
TASS has summed up the main facts known about the extension of the deal.
Extension by half
Russia agreed to extend the grain deal only for 60 days, though its first part - on supply of Ukrainian grain - stipulates automatic extension only for 120 days. The new term will start on March 18.
A source familiar with the details of the negotiations around the agreement told TASS that the term of the agreement’s extension makes no difference, adding that if the deal is extended for 60 days "either party may raise the issue of terminating it" upon expiration of the term.
The deal will be extended under the same conditions defined earlier, while Moscow will insist on making sure that the pledge given to Russia "on the implementation of specifically the second track, meaning the removal of all sanctions, direct and indirect, on the supply of Russian agricultural products to international markets, is fulfilled," according to Grushko. "It is not only about the actual possibility of transportation itself, the access to foreign ports for our vessels, [but also] about insurance, as well as the necessity to solve issues related directly to production, cultivation of grain in our country," as well as "delivery of respective machinery, spare parts, and various agricultural equipment," he said.
Problems of Russian exports
Moscow has repeatedly stressed that the Ukrainian part of the deal is implemented, while Russian exports are still blocked due to the West’s sanctions. In particular, the issue is about sanctions against Rosselkhozbank and fertilizers blocked in European ports.
Moscow demands the lifting of European Union’s sanctions against Rosselkhozbank, including its return to the international system SWIFT, to simplify exports’ financial support. Brussels has said several times that it does not prohibit transactions "required for purchases, import and transportation of agriculture products" from Russia, while Rosselkhozbank can use alternative ways of financial messaging. A source told TASS that Western countries are reluctant to connect the Russian bank to SWIFT again out of fear that it will be used not only for transactions in the agriculture sector.
Moreover, 262,000 tons of Russian fertilizers remain in the ports of Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Estonia. Earlier, Moscow announced its readiness to deliver them to poorest countries free of charge, though only one batch of 20,000 tons has been sent to Malawi. "Artificial barriers and delays are being created," Grushko said.
Another Moscow’s initiative to resume export of ammonia fertilizers through the Tolyatti-Odessa pipeline is blocked by Kiev due to political considerations, a source told TASS.
Reaction of UN, Turkey, Ukraine
The United Nations has said that it took note of Russia’s stance, adding that the organization remains "totally committed" to the grain agreement. The UN is consistently working with the private sector and Western countries to make sure that the Russian part of the deal is fully implemented, though "obviously a lot of these things are not within the decision-making powers for the United Nations," Spokesman for the UN Secretary General Stephane Dujarric said.
Ukraine has said that the extension of the deal for two months contradicts the previous agreements. Moreover, Kiev pushed for an increase in the number of ports for supplies of Ukrainian agriculture products under the agreement (there are three of them now, including Odessa, Chernomorsk and Yuzhny), a source told TASS.
Turkey’s Ministry of National Defense said on Tuesday that Ankara welcomed the extension of the grain deal. With agreements being an important initiative on settlement of all crises through dialogue, it is important to support it, the ministry added.
Conclusion of grain deal
The grain deal was concluded on July 22, 2022 in Istanbul. It consists of two parts - agreements on supply of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea (signed by the UN and Turkey separately with Russia and Ukraine) and a memorandum inked by Moscow and the UN, on lifting restrictions on export of Russian agriculture products and fertilizers. The first part of the deal was signed for a period of 120 days with the possibility of automatic extension unless there were parties’ objections, while the second part suggested a three-year period.
Russia suspended its participation in the deal after Ukraine attacked the country's ships and vessels engaged in the work of the corridor for supply of Ukrainian grain in Sevastopol on October 29, 2022. Moscow stressed that the attack route partially ran through the corridor. The Russian side demanded guarantees that there would be no threats for its ships. Ukraine delivered such guarantees through the UN and Turkey, after which Russia resumed its participation in the agreement on November 2.
On November 17, 2022, the grain deal was extended for 120 days under the previous conditions as there were no objections by the parties. That said, Moscow pointed out that the agreements on supply of Ukrainian grain and the implementation of the second part of agreements were mutually connected.