The Kremlin has said it will rejoin the UN-administered grain export corridor from Ukraine, after pulling out over the weekend following a drone attack on Russian warships in the port of Sevastopol.
Moscow’s humiliating climbdown came two days after a large convoy of ships moved a record amount of grain in defiance of Russia’s warnings that it would be unsafe without its participation, and after high-level diplomatic contacts between Turkey – one of the guarantors of the scheme with the UN – and Russia.
Russia’s withdrawal had reignited fears over global hunger and high food prices that had been alleviated by the inauguration of the scheme earlier this year, which allowed cargo ships to move Ukrainian gain without fear of being targeted.
The Russian U-turn on the grain corridor came as the White House on Wednesday accused North Korea of covertly shipping a “significant number” of artillery shells to Russia in support of its invasion of Ukraine.
Confirming Turkish reports that Moscow would lift its suspension of involvement in the grain deal, the Russian defence ministry said it had received written guarantees from Kyiv not to use the Black Sea grain corridor for military operations against Russia.
“The Russian Federation considers that the guarantees received at the moment appear sufficient, and resumes the implementation of the agreement,” the ministry statement said.
The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, said earlier that the Russian defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, had told his Turkish counterpart that the 22 July grain deal brokered by Turkey and the UN would continue to operate as of midday on Wednesday.
Erdoğan will be seen as having successfully called the Russian bluff to blockade Ukrainian ports or even sink civilian cargo ships carrying grain abroad. The Turkish leader had said exports of grain from Ukraine would continue with or without Russian approval and appears to have brokered the Russian climbdown.
“The grain transports will continue as agreed before as of 12pm today,” said Erdoğan, who has emerged as a key intermediary between Kyiv and Moscow.
Russia suspended its involvement in the deal over the weekend, saying it could not guarantee safety for civilian ships crossing the Black Sea because of an attack on its fleet there. Ukraine said that was a false pretext.
Russia’s withdrawal followed a series of battlefield setbacks, which have been further underlined by recent high-profile Ukrainian strikes on the Russian Black Sea fleet at Sevastopol and on the Kerch Strait Bridge to Crimea.
Russia has repeatedly accused Ukraine of using the grain corridor to prepare attacks on Russia, including the bombing of the Kerch Bridge last month, where the explosives used in the attack were allegedly shipped from Odesa.
After its diplomatic retreat, Russia’s future threats to hold the deal hostage will probably be taken less seriously by the international community.
Russia may have balked because the grain deal was also popular with countries in Africa and the Middle East facing shortages of food imports. Moscow has sought to curry favour with those countries to provide diplomatic support for its invasion of Ukraine.
Ships have continued to carry Ukrainian grain on the route despite the suspension, but that had been unlikely to continue in the long term as insurance companies announced at the beginning of the week they would not issue new insurance contracts due to Russia’s move.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said earlier that the world should respond firmly to any Russian attempts to disrupt Ukraine’s export corridor across the Black Sea, which was blocked after Moscow invaded Ukraine on 24 February.
The Russian blockade has exacerbated food shortages and a cost of living crisis in many countries, as Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest suppliers of grain and oilseeds.
Amid mounting evidence of shortages being experienced by Moscow in key weapons systems, the White House on Wednesday accused North Korea of covertly shipping a “significant number” of artillery shells to Russia in support of its invasion of Ukraine.
The national security council spokesperson, John Kirby, said the US believes North Korea is “trying to make it appear as though they are being sent to countries in the Middle East or north Africa”. He declined to provide a specific estimate on the quantity of ammunition being sent to bolster the Russian effort.
Kirby said North Korea “is covertly supplying” the ammunition to Russia, adding, “We’re still monitoring this to determine whether the shipments are actually received.”
Kirby said the North Korean shipments are “not going to change the course of the war,” citing western efforts to resupply the Ukrainian military.
