BREAKING NEWS UPDATE: Russia gives assurances that it will honour grain export deal

9.02 am : July 25 – Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister has today given assurances that he had:  “Reaffirmed the commitment of Russian grain exporters to meet all their commitments.”

Speaking in Egypt which imports around 80 per cent of its annual requirement from Russia he said: “We discussed specific parameters of cooperation in this area, agreed on further contacts between the relevant ministries, and we have a common understanding of the causes of the grain crisis.”

A blockade of Black Sea ports brought on by the Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused a world shortage of grain, pushing prices up globally and creating supply bottlenecks across the world. The deal brokered by the U.N. and Turkey was supposed to bring an end to the problem, but all of that was put in jeopardy after Russia bombed the port of Odessa within hours of signing the deal.

Ukraine for its part, said today, that it is working frantically to get the supplies of grain going again and that it will begin exports immediately but that continued threats from Russia could result in stoppages and delays.

5.45 pm : July 22 – The end could be in sight for high food prices as Russia and Ukraine have reportedly signed a UN and Turkey brokered deal to reopen grain exports.

The deal signed on Friday, July 22 will see Ukrainian Black Sea ports used for the export of grain reopened, raising hopes that some of the international food crisis started by Russia’s invasion of its neighbour will come to an end.

The deal was agreed upon following two months of talks and resulted in what U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called a “package” that would both restore Ukrainian grain exports while easing Russian grain and fertilizer shipments.

"This is an agreement for the world."

— @antonioguterres calls signing of Black Sea Grain Initiative a beacon of hope, possibility & relief in a world that needs it more than ever. https://t.co/hRUq11fMvf pic.twitter.com/17oHzYnGR9

— United Nations (@UN) July 22, 2022

The deal comes despite the ongoing war and the tough Western sanctions on Moscow.

If the deal between Russia and Ukraine is kept to, then this could be the start of the normalisation of food prices. Only time will tell with Russia having failed to keep to agreements before, but perhaps now is the time and the opportunity for the world to step in and ensure that the agreement is adhered to.

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