In 2023, Russia illegally exported at least 4 million tons of grain from the occupied Ukrainian territories. The stolen grain allows the Kremlin to set world records for wheat sales in global markets, acknowledged Russian President Putin.
“Russia maintains its first place worldwide for wheat sales in global markets. People who previously worked in agriculture probably couldn’t even imagine such a thing,” said Putin.
At the same time, the exact amount of illegally exported Ukrainian grain is unknown. Putin refers to difficulties in calculations due to “various reasons.” “It’s not easy to count there for various reasons; statistics are expensive, etc. But it doesn’t matter,” said the Kremlin leader.
The PRIME Russian Economic Information Agency previously reported that Russia began breaking records for gross grain harvest in 2022 – that is, after the invasion of Ukraine. Occupiers harvested nearly 160 million tons of grain in just 2022. The second-largest record for gross harvest was set in 2023.
In December, the National Resistance Center reported that the Russians were exporting Ukrainian grain to Syria and Iran through the ports of occupied Crimea.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is doing everything possible to restore the pace of grain exports through the Black Sea. The speed of exporting agricultural products via the grain corridor has almost returned to pre-war levels. According to the President of the Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation (UAC), Leonid Kozachenko, on Ukrainian Radio, cargo insurance costs have also significantly decreased.
Before the full-scale invasion by Russia, Black Sea terminals were the main route for exporting grain. “On average, we exported 7.5-8 million tons of grain monthly. Now, we have surpassed this threshold, so capacities are almost restored. Although the terminals in Mykolaiv and Kherson are not operational now, their restoration is still ahead. But what has been done is of great significance,” said Kozachenko.
To protect the maritime export corridor, Ukraine has installed “new weaponry on the Black Sea shores that targets enemy targets, hindering grain transportation.” Maritime export is extremely important for Ukrainian farmers, as a fourfold increase in logistics costs forced them to reduce winter grain crop plantings.
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