Russia has stopped a crucial deal that allowed Ukraine to export millions of tonnes of grain through the Black Sea, hours after an attack on the bridge that connects Russia to occupied Crimea – which is a major artery for Moscow’s troops fighting in Ukraine.
The decision to end the deal, which was brokered by the UN and Turkey last year in order to alleviate a food crisis caused by a Russian blockade of Ukrainian ports, was branded a “cynical move” by the president of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest exporters of grain and other foodstuffs, and any interruption to its deliveries could drive up food prices across the globe.
