Moscow to Help African Countries Amid Grain Deal Suspension

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Moscow will help African countries in connection with the suspension of the grain deal, our partners understand Russia's position, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said on Monday.

"We are in contact with the leadership of many countries, such contacts are continuing, we will help as much as possible," Bogdanov said, responding to a question on whether Russia will assist African countries against the background of the suspension of participation in the grain deal.

Earlier, Russian Ambassador to Turkey Alexei Yerkhov told a Turkish newspaper that Moscow did not see fulfillment of promises to facilitate the supply of Russian products as part of the Ukrainian grain deal.

"The realization of the Ukraine-related part [of the grain deal] seems to be good - 8.5 million tonnes of grain left Ukrainian ports. As for exports from Russia, there have been no major changes so far. Of course, we supply a number of products to the international market, including Turkey, which traditionally buys a large amount of grain from us. However, we do not see the fulfillment of the promises made to us regarding the facilitation of our deliveries," Yerkhov said.

The envoy specified that Russia is unable to receive payments for goods delivered under the UN-brokered initiative due to the disconnection of Russian financial institutions from the SWIFT system.

"The obstacles to the export of Russian fertilizers through European countries have not been removed. Russian ships have no access to European ports. The lack of insurance of our cargo and carriers’ liability remains a problem. All this could have a negative impact on food security," Yerkhov noted.

The ambassador stressed that Russia decided to suspend its participation in the grain initiative as it could no longer guarantee the safety of civilian cargo ships after the Ukrainian attack on Sevastopol.

Meanwhile, Konstantin Kosachev, Deputy Speaker of the Federation Council, upper chamber of the Russian parliament, said that Russia was ready to completely replace Ukrainian grain on the world market, following Moscow’s decision to suspend its participation in the grain initiative.

"At least 50 countries are critically dependent on our grain, including the poorest countries in Africa. Given the huge harvest in the country, Russia is ready to completely replace Ukrainian grain on the world market. Our export potential in the current season is estimated at more than 50 million tonnes," Kosachev said.

According to the senior lawmaker, about 10.5 million tons of Russian grain have already been sent to countries in Asia and Africa outside of the grain deal.

On October 29, the Russian defense ministry said that Moscow was suspending its participation in the grain deal following Ukraine's drone attack targeting vessels of the Russian Black Sea Fleet as well as civilian ships in Sevastopol. The ministry said that preparations for the attacks were carried out under the guidance of UK specialists.