Moscow may quit the United Nations-brokered Ukrainian grain deal if its provisions on the facilitation of exports of Russian food products and fertilizers aren’t implemented, the country’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva has said.
“If we see nothing is happening on the Russian side of the deal – export of Russian grains and fertilizers – then excuse us, we will have to look at it in a different way,” Gennady Gatilov told Reuters on Thursday.
“There is a possibility” of Moscow withholding its support for the agreement, the envoy said. “We are not against deliveries of grains, but this deal should be equal, it should be fair and fairly implemented by all sides,” he clarified.
According to Gatilov, the Russian side has forwarded a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday, setting out a list of complaints on how the deal is being implemented.
A UN delegation is expected to arrive in Moscow on Sunday to discuss the renewal of the agreement, which is widely seen as key to avoiding a global food crisis.