UN says sees ‘progress’ on Russia fertiliser exports

Geneva, Nov 3 (AFP/APP):Negotiations underway to unblock exports of fertiliser from Russia have made “important steps forward”, one of the main United Nations negotiators said Thursday, acknowledging though there was still a way to go.

Moscow has complained its grain and fertiliser exports continue to face issues over sanctions imposed after its invasion of Ukraine, despite two agreements signed on July 22 that called for sanctions to spare agriculture-related products and granted safe passage for Ukrainian grain exports.

The second of those agreements, brokered by Turkey and the UN, has been working quite well, allowing millions of tonnes of grain to leave Ukrainian ports, and relieving some fears over a deepening global food security crisis.

But concerns have been increasing over that deal as well after Russia briefly exited it last week over a drone attack on its Black Sea Fleet in Crimea, and with a November 19 renewal deadline looming.

The Kremlin said Thursday it had yet to decide if it will extend its participation.

But UN trade negotiator Rebeca Grynspan told reporters in Geneva that she had “hope that the parties will be responsible and will extend and expand the Black Sea grain initiative.”

And she said significant progress was being made towards unblocking the situation with Russia’s fertiliser exports.

“We are working very hard making that facilitation, (and) have concrete results,” said Grynspan, who heads the UN’s trade and development agency UNCTAD.

“We have made important steps forward, but there is still a road to be travelled, especially with respect to the fertiliser crunch that we are seeing in the world.”

She acknowledged that fertiliser exports from Russia — the world’s largest producer — continue to face significant obstacles, but said “we have been clarifying and engaging with the EU, the US and the UK to solve these problems.

“I think that we are making progress,” she said, adding though that the negotiators had not made “all the progress that I would want to see right now.”

“It is a difficult issue, it is a complex ecosystem.”