Last ship to leave Ukraine under Black Sea grain deal as talks with Russia stall

Issued on: 17/05/2023 – 08:04

6:01am: Last ship to leave Ukraine under Black Sea grain deal

The last ship is due to leave a port in Ukraine on Wednesday under a deal allowing the safe Black Sea export of Ukraine grain, said a UN spokesperson, a day before Russia could quit the pact over obstacles to its grain and fertilizer exports.

The United Nations and Turkey brokered the Black Sea deal for an initial 120 days in July last year to help tackle a global food crisis that has been aggravated by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, one of the world’s leading grain exporters.

Moscow later agreed to extend the Black Sea pact until May 18 – as long as a list of demands regarding its own agricultural exports was met. “There are still a lot of open questions regarding our part of the deal. Now a decision will have to be taken,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday, according to Russian media.

Senior officials from Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the UN met in Istanbul last week to discuss the Black Sea pact. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday: “Contacts are going on at different levels. We’re obviously in a delicate stage.”

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said last week he thought the deal could be extended for at least two more months.

2:00am: US volunteer fighter killed in Ukraine, Wagner chief says

The head of Russia’s private Wagner mercenary group on Tuesday said a US volunteer had died fighting alongside Ukrainian troops in the country’s east.

In a video shared by Russian military bloggers, Yevgeny Prigozhin showed the body of what he said was an American laying in the rubble of a building.

The clip shows the Wagner chief walking with his men at night, and explosions can be heard – but it is not clear where or when it was filmed.

Standing beside the body, which appears to have suffered a stomach wound, Prigozhin said: “He came to meet us. Citizen of the United States of America.”

Prigozhin shows the camera what appears to be the soldier’s identity documents, without giving a full name.

12:55am: Patriot missile defence system in Ukraine likely damaged

A US-made Patriot missile defence system being used by Ukraine likely suffered some damage from a Russian strike, two US officials said on Tuesday, adding that it did not appear to have been destroyed.

The Patriot system is one of an array of sophisticated air defence units supplied by the West to help Ukraine repel a Russian campaign of air strikes that has targeted critical infrastructure, power facilities and other sites.

One US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity and citing initial information, said Washington and Kyiv were already talking about the best way to repair the system and at this point it did not appear the system would have to be removed from Ukraine.

Key developments from Tuesday, May 16:

Ukraine said on Tuesday it had shot down six Russian Kinzhal missiles in a single night, thwarting a weapon Moscow has touted as a next-generation hypersonic missile that was all but unstoppable.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have agreed to separate meetings with a delegation of leaders from six African countries to discuss a possible plan to end the war in Ukraine, South Africa‘s president said Tuesday.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Tuesday pledged to build an “international coalition” to provide fighter jet support for Ukraine.

Read yesterday’s live blog to see how the day’s events unfolded. 

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP & Reuters)