Kuleba on lifting sanctions in exchange for a return to the grain deal: If we make concessions, Russians will put forward new demands in a month

According to Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, the UN, which proposes to lift some sanctions against Russia in exchange for a return to the grain deal, should not succumb to Russian blackmail, otherwise they will put forward new demands in a month.

Kuleba emphasized that Ukraine will react negatively if the UN seeks to lift some sanctions in order to restore the grain deal for Russia.

“The UN itself does not impose sanctions, but the truth is that the UN has signed a memorandum with Russia, and some things are written there, and the UN is trying to help other actors. But it’s nonsense,” Kuleba said.

According to him, it’s not about sanctions, but about specific business interests of specific Russian officials, high-ranking officials from Putin’s inner circle.

“No one should be fooled into thinking that by doing this we are worried about an African who will buy cheaper bread or even have access to it. By specifically solving the problem of Rosselkhozbank, people are helping person X in Putin’s entourage regain access to the cache. That’s the whole story, everything else is an attempt to manipulate someone,” he emphasized.

He also noted that even if Russia returns to the grain deal, it will still sabotage the process.

“Instead of ten ships, it inspects 2-3. Even if they come out and say that we are returning (to the grain deal – Ed.), they can simply pull the strings inside and slow down its functioning. That is why Ukraine insists on developing an alternative corridor,” Kuleba explained.

He added that there is a technical possibility for this, but the security capability needs to be further strengthened.

“We have already shown that it works, we see countries showing interest in helping us organize the functioning of this corridor on a stable basis,” Kuleba summarized.

Tags: Black Sea grain deal, Ukraine, Russia, sanctions