Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov, in a comment framed as a response to a question regarding the US demand that Russia return to the Black Sea grain deal, replied with a series of rhetorical questions of his own. “[W]hat have the local authorities done to ensure that the interrelated Istanbul Agreements are effectively implemented,” he asked. “Perhaps they have contributed to the removal of the barriers impeding the implementation of the Russia-UN Memorandum on the promotion of Russian grain and fertilizers to the world markets, which is as important for global food security?”
“Washington has not lifted a finger to eliminate the agricultural agreements distortions that were created by the U.S.,” he said. “At the same time, the United States turned the Black Sea Initiative, that was originally conceived as a humanitarian one, into a commercial project for the benefit of Western agricultural companies. For almost a year, food products were supplied not to destitute countries, but mainly to developed Western states.”
“The decision of our country not to renew participation in the grain deal absolutely corresponds with the current circumstances,” Antonov concluded. “The Administration should stop misleading the rest of the world. We will be ready to consider the issue of restoring the mechanism only when we are absolutely certain about the efficiency and effectiveness of the package of the Istanbul Agreements.”
