Stephane Dujarric
The representative of UN Secretary-General Stephan Dujarric gave a speech, where he said that it is necessary to advocate free trade of food through the Black Sea to secure people all over the world and provide for their needs. He also commented on the accusations against Moscow of stealing Ukrainian greenery.
According to Ukrainian authorities, Russia may have embezzled up to 500,000 tons of grain worth up to $100 million. Most of it was reportedly taken from Zaporizhzhya, Kherson, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions. Part of this volume was shipped to Crimea by trucks, and they were loaded on ships. The information was reported to representatives of the World Food Program.
The UN could not confirm that Russia was stealing grain from Ukrainian ports and then selling it. Stefan Dujarric confirmed on June 7 that Russia did not steal Ukrainian grain.
Dujarric commented on the situation: «We have seen these reports in the media, we have spoken to our colleagues from the World Food Program. They have no way of confirming these accusations. We are all in favor of free trade in food across the Black Sea to meet the needs of people around the world».
A few days earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin had noted that there were no problems with the export of Ukrainian grain; Russia provides a safe corridor for the export of grain in ports under Russian control. Putin also noted that it is possible to increase the number of corridors for grain exports to 5.
Ukrainian grain is exported in several ways at once: through the border zones (Poland, Romania), as well as through the Azov and Black Seas.
The grain export was also discussed at the talks between the defense ministers of Russia and Turkey – Sergei Shoigu and Hulusi Akara. Both sides expressed incomprehension and groundlessness of accusations from Ukraine. On June 8, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is scheduled to visit Turkey, where attention will be devoted to the crisis in grain supplies and possible options for the establishment of logistic chains.
Moreover, amid the Kiev’s accusations against Russia, the Kiev’s forces burned grain when withdrawing from Mariupol. The AFU needed to destroy as much food as possible. In terms of strategy, this is a profitable move; in terms of food supplies, it is not.
The situation is a classic political tool, with one country accusing the guilty party of acts it did not commit. The positive side of this situation is that the UN is still trying to assess the international situation soberly and not to stigmatize countries that have not committed the acts attributed to them.
