White House says it will support Russian agricultural exports

The United States said on Tuesday it would support Russian fertiliser exports, which Moscow has been complaining about since it was hit with sweeping sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine.

„The United States will help restore Russia's access to the global export market for agricultural products and fertilisers, reduce the cost of marine transportation insurance, and increase access to ports and payment systems for such transactions,Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky soon criticised Washington's decision. 

„We believe that this is a weakening of the position and a weakening of the sanctions (...) we do not know the details of this point yet“, – Zelensky said during a press conference in Kiev.

At the time, the Kremlin said the US-announced agreement to halt Russian-Ukrainian strikes in the Black Sea could only come into force after the lifting of export restrictions on Russian agricultural products.

Moscow said the agreement would enter into force after the „lifting of sanctions restrictions“ on the Bank of Agriculture of Russia and other „financial institutions involved in the international trade of food products“, and only after they are reconnected to the SWIFT international settlement system.