UN committed to grain exports even though Grain Deal expired: Dujarric
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The UN Spokesperson says that the UN is "scrupulously" fulfilling its obligations under the Memorandum of Understanding with Russia.
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United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric at U.N. headquarters, New York, US, June 20, 2017. (AP)
United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric confirmed today, on Wednesday, that the UN remains committed to ensuring that Russian and Ukrainian grain and fertilizer exports go through even though the Black Sea grain deal expired this week.
During a briefing, Dujarric said: "With or without the 90 days, our commitment to the goals of the Black Sea Initiative and the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) [with Russia] are continuing unabated".
He added that through Monday, the UN was "scrupulously" fulfilling its obligations under the MOU with Russia.
Russia has given the United Nations three more months to fulfill its memorandum with Moscow on the export of Russian grain and fertilizers, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told Radio Sputnik on Wednesday.
"The UN has three more months to implement [the memorandum with Russia on the export of Russian grain and fertilizers] to achieve concrete results," Zakharova said.
Read next: End of grain deal to have major consequences on global food security
The Russian diplomat added that the door is still open to discuss the grain deal only if obligations towards Russia are met, added Zakharova.
This comes in light of Russia's announcement on Monday that the agreements underlying the contentious Black Sea grain deal have been "terminated," and that it will return to the agreement as soon as all parties involved take the previously agreed-upon procedures.
Russian First Deputy Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyanskiy announced the same day that there will be no further discussions or talks on the matter.
The UN and humanitarian groups emphasized, on Monday, that the Russian decision to put an end to the grain deal that offered Ukrainian grain an export route via the Black Sea could have extensive consequences and an even greater impact on the most vulnerable countries according to Axios.
