KYIV. March 14. UNN. Consultations on extending a vital deal on Ukraine’s grain exports are continuing, the UN said on Tuesday, after Russia’s proposal to extend it for just 60 days cast doubt on the deal’s fate. UNN.
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“The UN will do everything possible to preserve the integrity of the agreement and ensure its continuity,” Jens Laerke, representative of the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, told reporters.
“Consultations … with all parties and at different levels continue,” he noted.
Details
His comments came after a one-day meeting in Geneva between senior Russian and UN officials, which ended with Moscow saying it would not object to the continuation of the so-called Black Sea Grain Initiative, as feared.
But Moscow agreed to extend the deal, which expires on Saturday, March 18, for only half of the 120-day period originally agreed upon.
Ukraine has said that this contradicts the original agreement.
Laerke, meanwhile, stressed the importance of continuing the deal.
“It’s a good deal… It has a very good effect on global food prices, lowering them, allowing food to come to market and get to the right places,” he said.
“So that’s the prize we’re paying attention to, and consultations are continuing with that in mind,” the UN representative noted.
At the same time, the publication notes that, in response to a question about the extension proposal, Kremlin press secretary Dmytro Peskov told reporters that “the second part of the agreement, which concerns us, has not yet been fulfilled.” The Kremlin also stated that the extension of the grain agreement is a “gesture of goodwill”.
It remained unclear what the ongoing consultations would lead to, the publication notes.
Asked if he could say what would happen on March 18, Laerke said, “I can’t.”
“We will see what will happen on Saturday, on Saturday,” said the UN representative.
Before
On March 14, in a conversation with the state-run Russian news agency, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Alexander Hrushko, said that the agreement on the Black Sea Grain Corridor was allegedly extended: “Indeed, the agreement was extended, it was agreed that it was extended for 60 days.”