Ukraine open to grain truce with Russia, deputy PM says

Kyiv is open to a grain truce with Russia, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Vsevolod Chentsov, told POLITICO’s Brussels Playbook Live event.

“It’s a good moment now to sit and talk, and to find a solution,” Chentsov said.

Asked by POLITICO’s Nicholas Vinocur whether Ukraine would be open to a grain truce — during which Russia and Ukraine agree to halt military strikes on ships carrying agricultural cargo, ports, and grain storage facilities in the Black Sea — Chentsov said: “Why not? We need to start somewhere, and step by step, eventually we can discuss something more comprehensive.”

Russia first launched attacks on port infrastructure and vessels anchored in Ukrainian Black Sea ports in the months after its full-scale invasion in 2022, stopping Kyiv from exporting grain.

“They [Russia] try to lock our grain exports in the Black Sea, but we are doing the same,” he said. “So again, this is a moment that Russia can finally understand that the situation can get worse also, and Russian people will notice more and more the consequences of this war for themselves.”

An escalation of hostilities in the Black Sea over the summer saw Russia and Ukraine attacking each other’s ships and ports, preventing crucial grain exports from reaching their destination and leading to concerns that the conflict could push global food prices even higher.

The body of water has also become particularly dangerous for commercial shipping, with more crew killed in the Black Sea in July than during the entirety of the war before that month. 

Before Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine accounted for 15% of the world’s corn exports, 10% of wheat, 15–20% of barley and 50% of all sunflower oil. 

As Ukraine enters its harvest season, Russia’s attacks have halved grain exports compared to last year, driving up global food prices, according to the EEAS.

There are also concerns that by October, Ukraine may run out of storage — leaving over 9 million tonnes of grain to rot while farmers lack the funds to plant next year’s crops.