Peskov said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken promised on Thursday that the United States would do what is necessary to make sure that everyone can export their food and products freely and safely if the Black Sea grain deal is resumed.

Russia, Türkiye and the United Nations signed an agreement in July 2022 to enable the export of grains and fertilizers from Ukraine through the Black Sea. Ukrainian Government representatives penned a similar document with Türkiye and UN representatives.

Russia formulated five requirements for the agreement to be maintained; to wit: the reconnection of Russia’s agricultural bank, Rosselkhozbank, to the SWIFT system; the resumption of supplies of agricultural machinery, spare parts and maintenance; the lifting of the ban on Russian cargo ships to access ports overseas; the reactivation of the Togliatti-Odesa ammonia pipeline; and the unfreezing of foreign assets and accounts of Russian companies related to the production and transportation of food and fertilizers.

Despite the fact that Russia’s demands were not met, the agreement was extended three times, the last time on May 17, for another two months.

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