Page 9 - RusRPTAug22

2.0 Politics
2.1 What’s in the Istanbul grain deal for Russia?
What’s in the Istanbul grain deal for Russia?Ukraine's grain exports have been unblocked by a deal struck in Istanbul last week, but what did Russia get out of it? / wiki
By Ben Aris in Berlin July 28, 2022
Millions of tonnes of grain trapped in Ukraine can now be exported thanks to the Istanbul grain deal that was signed on July 22 by Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the UN. But what does Russia get out of the agreement?
Russia made several demands during the talks and got most of what it asked for, including easing of sanctions that threatened Russia’s own food security.
As a result of the deal Ukraine is expected to start the export of an estimated 22mn tonnes of Ukrainian wheat, corn, and other cereals from the ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk and Yuzhne.
Under the agreement, Ukrainian naval vessels will escort the ships carrying the grain. Turkey and the UN will inspect the cargo ships to make sure they are not carrying weapons. An international coordination centre has already been set up in Odesa to oversee the operation.
One of the reasons for Russia’s decision to sign the agreement was pressure from Moscow’s partner-states in the Middle East and North Africa that faced food shortages and possible social unrest. As Russia needs all the friends it can get in the Global South, the deal will allow Russia to supply these countries with badly needed grain.
“Since the beginning of March, the leaders of countries as diverse as Turkey, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Israel have all voiced their concern to Moscow – both formally and informally – over blocking grain exports via the Black Sea. Problems with food supplies, they argued, could destabilise the region, just as they did during the Arab Spring,” scholar Alexandra Prokopenko said in a paper for Carnegie Endowment for World Peace.
The deal allows not only for Ukraine to export more grain, but also Russia. Russia is enjoying a bumper harvest and earns tens of billions of dollars from its own exports. Easing sanctions to facilitate Russian agricultural exports wasn’t officially a part of the Istanbul grain deal but was successfully negotiated in parallel talks with the United States and European Union. In 2021, Russia took in $11bn from exporting grain and with wheat prices currently at record highs it could earn even more this year.
9 RUSSIA Country Report October 2020 www.intellinews.com