Calling Black Sea Grain Deal Meaningless, President Putin: We Can Replace Commercial or Free Ukrainian Wheat

JAKARTA - Russia withdrew from the Black Sea grain deal that guaranteed Ukraine's safe grain exports because the deal lost its meaning, President Vladimir Putin wrote in an article published on Monday.

"The continuation of the grain deal has lost its meaning," President Putin said according to an article on the Kremlin website.

Saying terms for Russia's proposed extension of the deal were ignored, Moscow last week walked out of a deal that allowed Ukraine a year ago to export grain from Black Sea ports, despite the war, to alleviate a global food crisis.

President Putin's main demands last week for Moscow to return to the deal, however, do not directly refer to humanitarian goals.

After exiting the deal, Russia has been pounding Ukrainian food-exporting ports on an almost daily basis. An attack on Sunday in the southern port of Odesa killed one person and injured dozens.

In an essay ahead of the second Russia-Africa summit that will take place in St. In St. Petersburg on Thursday and Friday, President Putin said Russia was expecting a record harvest this year.

"I want to make sure that our country is able to replace Ukrainian wheat both commercially and for free, especially since we are again expecting a record harvest this year," said President Putin.

It is known, Russia and the West are increasingly competing for influence in Africa. Although Moscow has so far invested little there, according to data from the United Nations, Russia has made diplomatic efforts to gain support from the continent.

In a March 2022 UN vote to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine, 28 African countries voted in favor of the resolution, but another 25 abstained or did not vote at all.

"Russia will continue to make great efforts to regulate the supply of grain, food, fertilizers, and others to Africa. We highly value and continue to develop dynamically all economic relations with Africa," President Putin wrote.