U.S. Felt U.N. Chief Was Too “Accommodating” to Russia on Grain Deal
The US felt UN secretary general António Guterres was too sympathetic to Russia’s interests when renegotiating the Black Sea grain deal, documents from the leaked Pentagon files reportedly suggested.
The report emerged as the Kremlin warned on Wednesday (April 12) that the outlook for extending the deal beyond 18 May was “not so great” because Russia’s own such exports still faced obstacles.
“No deal can stand on one leg: It must stand on two legs,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said. “In this regard, of course, judging by the state of play today, the outlook [for its extension] is not so great.”
The export deal was brokered by the UN and Turkey in July last year to help tackle a global food crisis that UN officials said had been worsened by the Ukraine conflict.
Last month, Russia agreed to renew the deal for only about 60 days, half the minimum period.
The Pentagon documents, which appear to describe private conversations between the UN chief and his deputy, show that Guterres, was keen to preserve the deal, even if that meant accommodating Russian interests, the BBC reported.
The US documents, seen by the broadcaster, reportedly say, “Guterres emphasised his efforts to improve Russia’s ability to export,” and that he would do this, “even if that involves sanctioned Russian entities or individuals”.
Source: The Guardian
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