Key Points
- The deal facilitated export of Russian foodstuffs and fertilisers despite sanctions
- UNCTAD confirms the agreement will not be renewed
GENEVA: The United Nations said Friday its agreement with Moscow to facilitate exports of Russian foodstuffs and fertiliser to international markets in a bid to rein in global food prices would end this month.
The United Nations trade and development agency, UNCTAD, said in a statement the “final consultations meeting” on the deal had been held in Geneva, without giving more details.
The three-year agreement will not be renewed when it expires on July 22, due to disagreements.
UNCTAD has taken the lead on UN efforts to limit increases in global food and fertiliser prices, which soared following Russia’s war with Ukraine in February 2022, fuelling fears of food insecurity.
The UN signed the agreement with Russia on July 22, 2022, with the aim of facilitating exports of Russian food and fertilisers, despite Western sanctions on Moscow.
In fact, the economic sanctions imposed on Russia after the war spared fertilisers and grain, but fear of accidentally ending up on the wrong side of the law had paralysed transporters and caused insurance premiums to skyrocket.
After intense discussions, Russia and the UN established a framework to facilitate insurance and financial transactions that was compatible with US, British and European Union sanctions systems.
But Russia — the world’s largest fertiliser producer — had repeatedly complained the agreement was doing little to protect it from secondary sanction effects.
A second agreement was also signed under the auspices of the UN on July 22, 2022, aimed at allowing the export of Ukrainian cereals.
