MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia said on Wednesday that it has not taken a final decision about whether to extend the Black Sea grain deal which is due to expire on July 17.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that no official decision had been announced yet on whether to renew the deal, which allows for the safe export of grain from Ukraine.
“We have not yet officially announced the decision, we will announce it in a timely manner,” Peskov said.Russia has consistently said it sees no grounds to renew the agreement beyond July 17 because of obstacles to its own exports of grain and fertiliser. But Peskov said there was still time for the West to address those issues.
“There is still time to fulfil that part of the agreements that concerns our country. Until now, this part has not been completed, and, accordingly, at the moment, unfortunately, there are no particular grounds for extending this deal,” he said.
Under the deal, Russia guaranteed the safety of grain ships heading to and from Ukrainian ports through waters it controls.
When it was signed in July 2022, the United Nations and Russia also signed a memorandum of understanding committing the U.N. to facilitate unimpeded access of Russian fertiliser and other products to global markets.
To fulfil the memorandum, Russia says several conditions must be met, including the readmission of the Russian Agricultural Bank (Rosselkhozbank) to the Belgian-based international banking payment system, SWIFT.
The Financial Times reported on Monday that the European Union was considering a proposal for the Russian Agricultural Bank to set up a subsidiary to reconnect to the global financial network, as an incentive for Moscow to extend the deal.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova rejected that idea on Tuesday, saying there was no substitute for restoring Rosselkhozbank’s full access to SWIFT.
(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
