MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/. Moscow to host talks on fulfilling the long-ignored Russian export provisions of the Black Sea grain deal; Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky tours European capitals as the fallout from the Kremlin drone attack continues; and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrives in Goa, India, for SCO confab focused on the organization’s expansion. These stories topped Friday’s newspaper headlines across Russia.

 

Izvestia: Can new grain consultations open up world markets for Russian agro exports?

On May 5, Moscow will host negotiations between Russia and the UN on the implementation of an initiative for giving Russian agricultural products and fertilizers access to global markets. Interest in the talks is increasing in light of the looming expiration of the Black Sea grain deal [on May 18] and statements by Russian officials about the non-fulfilment of the grain deal provisions pertaining to exports of Russian goods, Izvestia writes. Experts are largely skeptical of the need to extend the grain deal, and the Federation Council (upper house of Russia’s parliament) is awaiting a meaningful response to Moscow's demands.

"It is well known that Russia has advanced five specific positions on which we anticipate reciprocal action; they are of a specific nature. So, the implementation of these points will, of course, influence our final decision," Konstantin Kosachev, deputy chairman of the Federation Council, told the newspaper. He added that everything else will be determined by the responses to Russia’s demands.

Former Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and former UN Deputy Secretary-General Sergey Ordzhonikidze stressed, "The essence of the problem is that we guaranteed a supply of grain to the Ukrainian government, while the UN Secretary-General keeps feeding us promises in a separate memorandum."

"If the UN could secure more favorable terms for Russia as regards implementation of the grain deal, it would do so. It is apparent, however, that the UN only has a limited ability to achieve concrete results," Oleg Barabanov, professor at the Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs at the Higher School of Economics (HSE University), believes. "So, it will be the usual conversation, which is unlikely to result in anything groundbreaking. The only remaining uncertainty is whether Russia will agree to extend the grain agreement beyond May 18," he added. However, the expert does not rule out the possibility that the grain deal will be extended beyond that date.

 

Nezavisimaya Gazeta: Zelensky tours Europe as fallout continues from Kremlin drone attack

Following his trip to Finland, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has visited the Netherlands, where he spoke at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. Experts believe that it was crucial for the Ukrainian leader to maintain a generally confrontational stance in order to exclude any possibility of peace talks with Russia, Nezavisimaya Gazeta writes. Keeping to such a stance was facilitated by the drone attack on the Kremlin the day before, as a result of which Moscow may now scuttle its earlier assurances of Zelensky's personal safety.

Reports of the drone strike on the Kremlin in the early hours of May 3 have undoubtedly heightened Zelensky's security concerns. Moscow called the incident a terrorist attack and an assassination attempt on Russian President Vladimir Putin, while Zelensky himself denied Kiev's involvement in the attack.

Konstantin Sivkov, vice president of the Russian Academy of Missile and Artillery Sciences, believes everything was organized. "This attack was carried out in order to provoke Russia into taking harsh measures in response. It was assumed that, under the current circumstances, Zelensky would at the very least be able to reach further agreements on additional weapons supplies from his Western partners, or, at the most, compel NATO to directly join in Kiev’s military conflict with Russia," he said.

Nikolay Silaev, leading researcher at the Institute of International Studies at the Moscow Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University), told the newspaper that the new military aid package was driven by NATO's own plans to stay the course in supporting Ukraine, and not necessarily by Zelensky's visits to European capitals. At the same time, however, it is crucial for the Ukrainian president that he remain top of mind for his foreign audience and that Ukraine remain in the page one headlines in news coverage by the US and European media. The expert believes that Zelensky was fully aware of the drone attack and, moreover, that its purpose was to keep the confrontational heat on high so as to preclude any possibility of negotiations.

 

Vedomosti: Lavrov arrives in India to discuss SCO expansion

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived in Goa, India, on May 4 for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) foreign ministers' meeting, which will last through May 5. The foreign ministers' meeting has evolved into a warm-up for the SCO leaders' summit, which is slated for July 3-4 in New Delhi. The ministers are expected to focus on the organization's expansion during the talks, Vedomosti writes.

The diplomats are expected to approve a draft decision on granting Iran the status of an SCO member state, as well as to consider Belarus' request to fast track the process of its accession to the organization. The SCO now has nine member states. The agenda in Goa also includes signing a memoranda granting Bahrain, Kuwait, Myanmar, the Maldives and the United Arab Emirates the status of SCO dialogue partners.

Fyodor Lukyanov, editor-in-chief of Russia in Global Affairs magazine, told the newspaper that Lavrov's visit to Goa marks a turning point. "Despite some stagnation in the past, the SCO is now transforming itself into the backbone organization of Eurasia," he said. "The SCO summit in Samarkand last year demonstrated the organization's vitality, and while nothing groundbreaking can be expected from it, its uninterrupted development is clear," the expert added.

The [government] ministers of India and Pakistan are expected to meet at the summit for the first time since 2016, Alexey Kupriyanov, head of the IMEMO South Asia and Indian Ocean Group, said. He noted that serious progress could be made only after relations between New Delhi and Islamabad are settled.

 

Kommersant: Yerevan, Baku set to finalize peace accord in talks hosted by various capitals

The negotiating marathon between the foreign minister of Azerbaijan, Jeyhun Bayramov, and his Armenian counterpart, Ararat Mirzoyan, concluded in Washington on May 4. US diplomats, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, met to discuss a peace treaty between Azerbaijan and Armenia, which could put an end to decades of bloodshed between the neighboring South Caucasus countries. The ministers are expected to meet again in Moscow, which plans to continue to act as a mediator, Kommersant writes.

As a result of the talks, Blinken said that the parties have made tangible progress in concluding a permanent peace agreement, claiming that an accord is close. Meanwhile, according to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the differences between the countries still include the mechanism for ensuring the security and rights of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians, as well as the format of the Stepanakert-Baku dialogue.

After the talks in Washington, Bayramov and Mirzoyan will meet in Moscow, which will not relinquish its role as a key mediator, Kommersant writes. The date of the meeting has not yet been set. Meanwhile, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that it would be preferable to discuss a peace treaty without the use of intermediaries.

In any case, the talks in Washington did not result in a final agreement on the text of the peace treaty, which gives Moscow room for diplomatic maneuvering, the newspaper writes.

 

Vedomosti: Russia’s top social network working on building its own Tinder analogue

VK, a major Russian social media platform, is working on its own proprietary dating app following the announcement that dating service Tinder would be leaving the Russian market. The new service could debut as early as the summer of 2023, sources close to the company told Vedomosti.

The decision to build its own dating app fits into the giant IT holding's strategy of offering as many services as possible within its ecosystem, Pavel Zhitnyuk, CEO of the iTrend communications agency, told the newspaper. "Given the obvious trend toward regional segmentation of the global Internet and deglobalization of services, the emergence of their own products to replace those that have left is a logical step for Internet companies," he believes.

According to one of Vedomosti's sources, VK’s accumulated user base will allow the service to expand its audience, but it may also prove to be a limiting factor given that users may find it awkward to encounter their social media friends while using the dating service.

A full-fledged rivalry with Tinder and other local dating services is unlikely because these apps encompassed users from other countries besides Russia, according to Fintech Lab accelerator analyst Sergey Vilyanov. However, if proper moderation tools are used to weed out scammers and agencies, and prices for premium services are kept low, VK could take a significant market share, he believes.

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