Ukraine says Russia deliberately delaying passage of 150 grain ships

Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, accused Russia of intentionally delaying passage of vessels carrying grain exports. He stated that 150 vessels were still waiting to be loaded.

Since July, when the United Nations signed an agreement with Russia, Ukraine, and Turkey, Kyiv has exported nearly 11 million tonnes grains and other food products.

Zelenskiy said in a video address that the delay had caused Ukraine to export 3 million tonnes less grain - enough to feed 10,000,000 people.

The agreement expires in November, but negotiations for an extension aren't moving fast because Russian concerns aren't being properly considered, the UN ambassador to Geneva said on Thursday (20 October).

Zelenskiy said: "The enemy is doing all it can to slow down food exports... more than 150 ships are waiting to fulfill contractual obligations regarding the delivery of agricultural products.

"This artificial queue, it only arose because Russia deliberately delayed the passage of ships," he said, but did not provide details.

Requests for comment from the Russian foreign and defense ministries were not immediately returned by them.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdan was quoted as saying that he did not see any obstacles to the extension of the agreement.

Moscow claims that Western sanctions are restricting Russia's exports of fertilizer and grain, even to countries in need.

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