US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres regarding Russia?’s statements to not renew the Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI) by the July 17 deadline, the Department of State said.
State Department Spokesman Mathew Miller said in a statement, late on Thursday, that Secretary Blinken and Guterres agreed on “the importance of the BSGI to global food security and on the adverse impact its suspension would have on food importers, especially in developing countries.” Blinken also thanked Guterres for his “firm commitment to the principles of the UN Charter, including sovereignty and territorial integrity, in the context of Russia?’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine,” the statement added.
On June 13, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was “thinking about” exiting the landmark Ukraine grain deal that allows grain from conflict-torn Ukraine to reach the global market. Moscow has repeatedly threatened to pull out of the crucial accord that grants safe passage for Ukrainian grain to be exported via the Black Sea, demanding guarantees for its fertiliser exports. The UN-brokered deal is set for another renewal on July 17.
Source: Kuwait News Agency