The Russian invaders violated the grain agreements the day after the signing. The media wrote that the UN continues to rely on the “kindness of the heart” of the Kremlin leader.
Russia launched a missile attack on the commercial port of Odessa a day after signing an agreement in Istanbul with UN Secretary General António Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on grain exports, which it blocked at Ukrainian ports.
According to Ukrainian media, citing the press service of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, there is grain at the port intended for export. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, after the missile attack, questioned the agreements with the Russian Federation, which the UN called “a beacon of hope.”
In Istanbul, Moscow promised not to attack ships and ports while the grain was in transit. Commenting on the Odessa attack, Turkish authorities said Russia had assured them of its innocence. However, Moscow itself confirmed the missile attack on the Odessa port. They say they destroyed a Ukrainian ship and a warehouse of Harpoon missiles.
In this regard, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declared Russia’s inability to negotiate, and the United States and the UN leadership accused Moscow of violating an agreement signed on Friday to export Ukrainian grain from Black Sea port.
It is worth noting that in Mariupol, meanwhile, the Russian occupiers restored the power supply to the port and transported the stolen Ukrainian grain. Correspondent.net says what the international press is writing about it.
Seeking peace with Russia through negotiations is a mistake
Taz, Germany
The Russian government relies on submission only by the use of violence. The shelling in Odessa was a show of force, carrying the following message: don’t think you tied our hands just because we signed some papers…
No agreement with the current regime in Moscow is sustainable. Russia’s cynical game is familiar to us from the wars in Syria and the Donbass in 2014-15: Moscow’s diplomatic promise is immediately followed by a military demonstration of the opposite: Moscow knows very well that there is no consequences – after all, the other side wants peace.
The UN is making the same mistake in Ukraine as in Syria: the organization is looking for humanitarian agreements through negotiations, but in terms of their implementation it is entrusted to the goodwill of Russia. And if Russia does not show such goodwill, they do not respond.
So in the case of Odessa, the representatives of the UN are joking about something that is not clear. No doubt we will soon hear another pleading with Putin, won’t he be too loving, guided by the kindness of his heart, to avoid this or the war crime.
A turbulent beginning does not mean its end
Washington Post, USA
The missile strike jeopardized a deal less than 24 hours earlier that diplomats hailed as a breakthrough after months of negotiations. Russia’s commitment not to attack Odessa and the other two ports involved in the supply of grain is the cornerstone of the document, as is the agreement not to attack merchant and other civilian ships and port facilities associated with this initiative.
“This attack calls into question the credibility of Russia’s commitment to yesterday’s agreement and undermines the work of the UN, Turkey and Ukraine to bring critical food to world markets,” said US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.
The Russian strike in Odessa indicates that there is no guarantee that even ships carrying grain will not be attacked, said Shashwat Saraf, regional director of the International Rescue Committee. According to him, this worries humanitarian organizations in East Africa, a region where the problem of the food crisis is particularly acute.
David Laborde, senior fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute, said economic operators would be extremely cautious and would prefer to wait for days of lull in the fighting before venturing into the area with ships.
“It will take days, if not weeks, to implement an agreement like this, so a chaotic start does not mean its end,” the expert said.
Russia’s “unpredictability” has a system
La Stampa, Italy
Look at all these doubts of Russia – between accusing the whole world of the end of the world and the desire to play the role of a victim, between tiresome stories about bright prospects for the Russian economy and the great damage from Western sanctions, between the justification. their own aggression in the light of the “NATO threat” and recognition of the project of imperial restoration, and now between the signed agreements – and the peeling, which turns the goal into useless waste paper, achieved through incredible effort through diplomatic channels.
All these are elements that represent the obvious unpredictability of the Kremlin’s strategy. Turning a blind eye to this fact is not only naive, but also irresponsible.
Putin cannot be trusted
FAZ, Germany
The missile attack on the port in Odessa is enough to recognize how much one can trust the regime of Vladimir Putin and his compliance with the signed agreements.
Moscow will continue to do everything to prevent the export of Ukrainian grain. The Kremlin will likely use propaganda smoke bombs and blame Ukraine for not complying with the agreement.
The event should not fall into the trap and use balanced language to call both sides to cooperate. The prospect of helping to solve the problem of the food crisis at the expense of Ukrainian grain exists only if every violation of the Russian agreement and every provocation of it finds a strong public reaction.
It could be weeks before grain supplies resume
Wall Street Journal, USA
The Russian strike likely violated its terms, particularly the agreement to refrain from attacking port facilities or civilian ships used to transport grain.
Odessa remains the last major port under Ukrainian control, failing to capture the Russian Federation. International grain traders said the attack destroyed a wagon unloading area and a train used to load grain.
The grain deal was supposed to clear the way for the export of about 18 million tons of wheat, corn and other goods that had been stuck at Ukrainian ports and grain elevators during the week. Now, however, industry analysts expect it could be weeks before grain supplies run out.
Russia must be forced into peace
Austria
So far, there is only one message that has definitely reached the Kremlin: it is the continued military pressure to use modern Western weapons. Only when Russia’s war of aggression is hopelessly stalled, Putin will begin to make some moves in the diplomatic arena.
Blackmail to remove sanctions
Suddeutsche Zeitung, Germany
The shelling in Odessa is calculated and proves that Vladimir Putin openly mocks the world community and manipulates public opinion.
Moscow understands that Ukraine needs this agreement. But a few missiles in Odessa, initially denied by the Kremlin and later admitted, were enough to sow maximum insecurity among Ukrainians, to anger the West, embarrass the UN, keep Erdogan at bay, and possible blackmail into further lifting of sanctions.
The US is making a plan B after the strike
CNN, USA
The United States is working with Ukraine on Plan B to unblock grain exports following Russia’s strikes in Odessa, the Agency for International Development (USAID) said.
Plan B included road, rail and river transportation, as well as shipping barges and adjusting rail systems to better match European ones so exports could move faster.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.