Nebenzya accused the “well-fed West” of depleting Ukraine’s agricultural reserves

New York, USA, 15 May 2023, 20:43 — REGNUM As part of the Black Sea grain deal, Ukrainian agricultural products were exported mainly to rich countries, and less than 3% went to the poorest countries. This was stated on May 15 at a meeting of the UN Security Council by the permanent representative of Russia Vasily Nebenzya.

“For almost a year, Ukraine’s agricultural reserves have been depleted by the already well-fed West”– he said.

The Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation noted that 40% of Ukrainian products went to the EU countries. The volume of food deliveries to African countries began to grow only in March 2023, thanks solely to the efforts of Moscow, the only party that fought to ensure that African countries were a priority in deliveries.

Nebenzya added that Russia is not allowed to supply fertilizers to other countries, despite the terms of the grain deal. Kyiv refuses to even discuss the issue of unblocking the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline.

“The export of ammonia was supposed to be launched in parallel with the export of grain, but this never happened”– said the permanent representative of the Russian Federation.

He also noted that the Ukrainian side is constantly putting forward new conditions that were not provided for by the grain initiative.

Earlier, Nebenzya noted that the grain deal has been going on for almost a year, but so far there has not even been any progress towards fulfilling the conditions of the Russian Federation. The US and the EU do not lift sanctions from Russian exporters, as well as from Rossselkhozbank, which provides financial support for the export of agricultural products.

Representative of the UN Secretary General Stéphane Dujarric May 15 noted that the deal ends on May 18. Until that time, it is planned to hold negotiations on its extension.

The Russian side has repeatedly stated that it will not extend the Black Sea initiative until it achieves its interests.