The first Ukrainian grain ship set sail, and four sets of “Haimas” rockets arrived in Ukraine again. The Russian-Ukrainian battlefield continued, and the West continued to add fuel to the fire. Can the newly opened “Black Sea Grain Road” cool down the conflict between Russia and Ukraine?
According to the Turkish Ministry of Defense, the first Ukrainian grain ship from the port of Odessa will arrive in Istanbul after midnight on August 2, local time.
The grain ship, named “Lazzoni”, flies the flag of Sierra Leone and is loaded with 26,000 tons of corn. The ship will not enter any port, but will conduct maritime security inspections at anchorage. At around 8 am on August 3, representatives of Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the United Nations will board the ship for a joint inspection. Subsequently, the grain ship will continue to sail to the destination Lebanese port city of Tripoli. The joint coordination center in Istanbul will also monitor it in real time to ensure the safety of navigation.
Russian Presidential Press Secretary Peskov said that this is a positive event, which provides an opportunity to test the implementation of the Istanbul agreement, and Russia hopes that all agreements reached will be implemented.
The Ukrainian President’s Office said on the same day that another 16 ships carrying grain were waiting to depart at the port of Odessa. These are the ships that have been stranded at the port of Ukraine since late February.
However, last weekend, the southern Ukrainian city of Nikolayev was hit by a large-scale attack, damaging several infrastructures. Ukrainian “grain tycoon” Vada Tursky and his wife were also killed in the shelling, casting a shadow over the grain transport channel that had just seen the light of day.
According to Ukrainian state television, on August 1, Kherson Oblast Governor Butri said that the Ukrainian army recaptured 46 settlements in the southern region of Kherson. On the same day, the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine stated that in order to ensure the safety of shipping routes, in the next two weeks, the number of grain ships departing from Ukrainian ports will be limited to 3 per day, and grain exports can reach 300 per month within 4 to 6 weeks. tons. However, some shipping companies are still assessing risks and are in no hurry to export grain via the Black Sea.
In this regard, Jiang Yi, a researcher at the Institute of Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, believes that the signing of the Russia-Ukraine food agreement is an agreement signed by the two sides with the United Nations, which means that both sides are unwilling to sit down on this specific issue. Going to negotiate together, the two sides still have antagonistic sentiments, and this has also planted uncertain factors for the sustainability of Ukraine’s grain exports. Judging from the current situation, Ukrainian grain is mainly transported through the port of Kherson state, so there are uncertainties about whether the transportation channel from Ukrainian to the port is safe, whether the port is safe for storage and transportation, and whether it is safe to carry.
In addition, dragged down by the war this year, Ukraine’s domestic grain production will probably shrink by about half. Jiang Yi believes that when all these factors are added together, the global food crisis cannot truly end completely.
In response to the departure of the first grain ship, UN Secretary-General Guterres said that the ship was not only loaded with corn, but also hoped. At the same time, he once again called for an end to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict as soon as possible. However, just when the international community generally hopes that the smooth departure of grain ships can cool down the currently stalemate situation in Russia and Ukraine, the United States and Western countries have added fuel to the situation.
On August 1, the U.S. Secretary of State announced that the United States would provide Ukraine with a total of $550 million in military aid. In a statement, the Pentagon said the aid included 75,000 rounds of 155mm artillery ammunition, which would be drawn from the Defense Department’s inventory. Blinken said the United States has provided Ukraine with a total of $8.7 billion in military aid since Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine.
In this regard, Ukrainian Defense Minister Reznikov also expressed his gratitude on the social platform, and said that four of the “Haimas” multiple-barrel rocket launcher systems have arrived in Ukraine and will be put into operation quickly. However, the Russian Ministry of Defense said on August 1 that two US-made “Haimas” rockets and other equipment were destroyed in the Russian missile strike on the Ukrainian Energy Machinery Plant in Kharkiv.
The U.S. provides arms, while the EU once again provides Ukraine with 1 billion euros in economic aid.
These actions of the United States and Western countries are believed to be “not wanting to make the situation better”, and some analysts even say that the United States and its allies are happy to see that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine tends to become protracted and complicated.
In this regard, Jiang Yi said that the signing of the Russia-Ukraine grain transport agreement is not so much a matter of Russia and Ukraine meeting each other halfway, but rather a pressure to give an explanation to the international community. At present, the focus and attention of both sides are still focused on the battlefield. The United States and the European Union hope to use this war to weaken Russia’s competitiveness and eliminate Russia’s threat to Europe, but this does not mean that the longer the fight, the better. The timing and rhythm of the war are in their own hands, allowing the dominant Western bloc to take the initiative in order to exert influence, manipulate weapons and economic aid, and profit from it.
(Look at news Knews editor Huang Yanlin)Return to Sohu, see more
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