Russia stops crucial Ukraine grain export deal hours after attack on Crimea bridge

Russia has stopped a crucial deal that allowed Ukraine to export millions of tonnes of grain through the Black Sea, hours after an attack on the bridge that connects Russia to occupied Crimea – which is a major artery for Moscow’s troops fighting in Ukraine.

The decision to end the deal, which was brokered by the UN and Turkey last year in order to alleviate a food crisis caused by a Russian blockade of Ukrainian ports, was branded a “cynical move” by the president of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest exporters of grain and other foodstuffs, and any interruption to its deliveries could drive up food prices across the globe.

The head of the UN, Antonio Guterres, said the move by the Kremlin “would strike a blow to people in need everywhere”, including the hundreds of millions facing hunger around the globe and all those who are facing a cost of living crisis. The White House said that the failure to extend the deal past its Monday deadline would “worsen food security and harm millions”, with the US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, describing the move as an “act of cruelty”.

Moscow has long been agitating that it might not extend the agreement, repeatedly complaining that parts of the deal allowing the export of Russian food and fertilisers had not been honoured and that Western sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine were restricting its own agricultural imports. Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, has come under pressure as the 16-month invasion has dragged on, with attacks taking place against key infrastructure in occupied territory as well as targets inside Russia. Walking away from the grain deal is likely to be seen as an act of punishment by the Kremlin for such incidents.

The latest attack occurred early on Monday morning and targeted the Crimean Bridge, also known as the Kerch Bridge, which links Russia with the Crimean peninsula it illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014. Kyiv has made clear that one of the aims of its own operation is to drive the Russians from all of its territory, including Crimea. The assault on the bridge, in which two Russians died, will sting Mr Putin. He described its construction as a “miracle” when it was opened in 2018; it is seen as the jewel in the crown of his infrastructure projects.

The explosions on the bridge killed two civilians, while their daughter was wounded. Moscow cast it as a “terrorist” act by Kyiv with the help of Ukraine’s Western allies – and denied it had anything to do with the decision to end the grain deal.

Ukrainian media quoted unidentified officials as saying that Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) was behind the attack, along with the Ukrainian navy, which it said had used water-based drones. Ukraine’s military did not officially claim the attack on the 12-mile (19km) bridge, but have made clear that it is considered a legitimate target given its use as a Russian supply line and for the movement of troops. SBU spokesperson Artem Dekhtyarenko euphemistically alluded to the idea that the agency would reveal the details of the attack after Ukraine won the war.

The assault on the road bridge to Crimea could have a direct impact on Moscow’s ability to supply its troops in southern Ukraine, and reveals the vulnerability of Russia’s own Black Sea infrastructure to devices such as seaborne drones – small, fast, remote-controlled boats packed with explosives.

It is the second attack on the Crimean Bridge in less than a year, with another explosion having rocked the structure in October. That incident, a day after Mr Putin’s 70th birthday, followed claims from Moscow that the bridge was protected by layers of defence.

Given Monday’s events, it seems unlikely that Moscow will return to the table immediately over the grain deal, but it has left the door open for future discussions should its “conditions” relating to its own exports be met. Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday afternoon that he hoped for progress in talks on keeping the deal alive. That may come to pass, but Moscow’s rhetoric currently points only one way.

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, raised the prospect of resuming grain exports without Russia’s participation, suggesting that Kyiv would seek Turkey’s support to negate, in effect, the de facto blockade imposed by Russia last year. But Mr Erdogan would probably be unwilling to set himself against Mr Putin in that way.

“We are not afraid,” spokesperson Serhiy Nykyforov quoted Mr Zelensky as saying. “We were approached by companies, shipowners. They said that they are ready; if Ukraine lets them go, and Turkey continues to let them through, then everyone is ready to continue supplying grain.”

There have been calls from a number of countries, as well as NGOs and aid agencies, for Russia to back down. The British foreign secretary, James Cleverly, said that the UK condemns Mr Putin’s attempts to use food “as a weapon”.

David Miliband, president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, said: “The International Rescue Committee is deeply alarmed at Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, putting the future of the grain exports from the region at risk – a decision which will be most painfully felt by the 349 million people around the world facing food insecurity today ... The expiration of the deal risks holding global food security at ransom.”

Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report