Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said yesterday that any talk about further steps on the Ukraine grain deal will be possible only after all the circumstances of Ukraine’s attack on the Russian Black Sea Fleet ships are clarified and the UN Security Council holds a meeting on this topic. “First of all, it is necessary to clarify all the circumstances of what happened,” he said, reported TASS. “This total outrage violates all the terms that were earlier agreed. So, probably, only after all the details are clear. You know that Russia has called a UN Security Council meeting. This problem will be the focus. So, after it, we will be able to say what our further steps will be.”
Rudenko’s statement came several hours after the Russian Defense Ministry reported its findings that at least some of the drones used in Saturday’s attack on the Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol were launched from the security corridor set up for vessels carrying grain under the grain deal.
TASS also reported that the Joint Coordination Council (JCC) in Istanbul reported this morning that no ships moved along the corridor yesterday. However, several ships, which were permitted to leave Ukrainian ports today, have taken to sea—though they have not yet reached the corridor. The Turkish daily Hurriyet, citing marine traffic data, reported that two ships, loaded with grain and other agricultural products, left Ukrainian ports today. It further cites the JCC reporting that twelve ships were due to leave Ukrainian ports on Monday and four were to head to Turkey.
