Africa-Press – Angola. The European Union sunday asked Russia to revoke its decision to withdraw from a UN-brokered grain deal, a move that undermines efforts to alleviate a global food crisis.
Russia suspended its participation in the Black Sea deal on Saturday, cutting off shipments from Ukraine, one of the world’s biggest grain exporters, in response to what it called a major Ukrainian drone attack earlier in the day, as its fleet, near the port of Sevastopol in Crimea, annexed to Russia.
“Russia’s decision to suspend participation in the Black Sea agreement jeopardizes the main export route for grains and fertilizers much needed to tackle the global food crisis caused by the war against Ukraine,” said the EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, on Twitter. “The EU calls on Russia to (reverse) its decision.”
On Saturday, US President Joe Biden called the measure “purely outrageous”, saying it will increase hunger, while Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Moscow of using food as a weapon. Yesterday, Russia’s ambassador to Washington retorted, saying the US response was “outrageous”.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said Ukraine attacked the Black Sea Fleet near Sevastopol with 16 drones early Saturday, and that “experts” from the British Navy helped coordinate what it called a terrorist attack.
Russia said it repelled the attack, but that the targeted ships were involved in securing the grain corridor in Ukraine’s Black Sea ports.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Moscow used the blasts 220 kilometers away from the grain corridor as a “false pretext” for a long-planned move.
“Russia planned this well in advance,” Kuleba said on Twitter. “Russia made the decision to resume its hunger games a long time ago and is now trying to justify it,” he said, without offering any evidence.
Russia’s withdrawal from the grain deal marks a new development in an eight-month war that began with Russia’s invasion in February and that has recently been dominated by a Ukrainian counteroffensive and Russian drone and missile attacks that have destroyed more. 30 percent of Ukraine’s power generation capacity.
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