Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Western countries yesterday, Wednesday, of distorting the grain agreement in the Black Sea to serve their own interests. However, he stated that Russia would return to the agreement "immediately" if all of its conditions were met.
Putin said, "Initially, the essence and meaning of the grain agreement had immense humanitarian significance. The West completely undermined this essence and distorted it, and instead of helping truly needy countries, the West used the grain agreement for political blackmail. Furthermore, it turned it into a tool for enriching transnational corporations and speculators in the global grain market."
He reiterated Moscow's position that it would return to the deal as soon as the West meets its five main demands: the return of the Russian Agricultural Bank to the SWIFT system, the resumption of exports of agricultural machinery and spare parts to Russia, the lifting of restrictions on insurance and the access of Russian ships and goods to ports, the restoration of the damaged ammonia export pipeline from Russia to Odessa in Ukraine, and the lifting of the ban on the accounts and financial activities of Russian fertilizer companies.
Putin added, "If all these conditions we previously agreed upon are met, we will return to the agreement immediately."
Moscow withdrew from the agreement on Monday, which allowed Ukraine to export grain from its Black Sea ports despite the ongoing war, to alleviate the global food crisis.
Russia stated that a parallel memorandum signed at the same time, intended to facilitate the export of Russian grains and fertilizers in light of the Western sanctions imposed on Moscow in response to its invasion of Ukraine, was ignored.
Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Defense declared that Moscow would now consider all ships heading to Ukrainian ports as potential carriers of military shipments.
The Russian Foreign Ministry granted the United Nations, which mediated the grain agreement along with Turkey, three months to implement the terms of the memorandum if it wanted Russia to return to the grain agreement.
