Rising food prices affect people in developing countries disproportionately, because they spend more of their money on meals. High grain prices in countries like Egypt, Lebanon and Nigeria exacerbated economic challenges and helped push millions more people into poverty or food insecurity. The war in Ukraine sent food commodity prices to record highs last year and contributed to a global food crisis, which was also tied to other conflicts, the fallout from the pandemic and climate factors. The last ship left Ukraine on Sunday and was inspected Monday. The agreement was renewed for 60 days in May, but the amount of grain and number of vessels departing Ukraine have plunged, with Russia accused of preventing new ships from participating since June 27. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said officials were talking with Russia and that he hoped the deal would be extended. White House national security spokesman John Kirby blasted Moscow for pulling out of the deal and said the decision would “harm millions of vulnerable people around the world.” In a post late Monday on his Telegram channel, Zelenskyy said he and Guterres agreed “to work together and with the responsible states" to restore food supplies via the Black Sea. Ukraine can still export by land or river through Europe, but those routes have a lower capacity and have stirred divisions among its neighbors. “There is simply too much at stake in a hungry and hurting world,” Guteres told reporters. would keep working to ensure the flow of supplies from Ukraine and Russia. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the end of the deal will result in more human suffering but that the U.N. JCC data shows that 57% of the grain from Ukraine went to developing nations, with the top destination being China, which received nearly a quarter of the food. Russia has repeatedly complained that the deal largely benefits richer nations. The Black Sea Grain Initiative has allowed three Ukrainian ports to export 32.9 million metric tons of grain and other food to the world, according to the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul. The Russian Foreign Ministry again declared the northwestern Black Sea area “temporarily dangerous.” Sergei Markov, a Moscow-based pro-Kremlin political analyst, speculated that if Ukraine doesn't heed the warnings, Russia could strike Ukrainian ports or place mines in shipping routes. “We are not afraid,” he said, adding that shipping companies told him “everyone is ready to continue supplying grain” if Ukraine and Turkey were on board. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he wanted to keep the initiative going even without Russia’s safety assurances for ships. Western sanctions do not apply to Moscow's agricultural shipments, but some companies may be wary of doing business with Russia. The grain deal provided guarantees that ships would not be attacked entering and leaving Ukrainian ports, while a separate agreement facilitated the movement of Russian food and fertilizer. Finding suppliers outside Ukraine that are farther away also could raise costs, analysts say. But food insecurity worldwide and prices at local stores and markets have risen as developing countries also struggle with climate change, conflict and economic crises. Some analysts don’t expect more than a temporary bump in food staples traded on global markets because countries such as Russia and Brazil have ratcheted up wheat and corn exports. The suspension of the deal sent wheat prices up about 3% in Chicago trading, to $6.81 a bushel, which is still about half what they were at last year's peak. Ukraine and Russia are both major global suppliers of wheat, barley, sunflower oil and other food that developing nations rely on. The initiative is credited with helping reduce soaring prices of wheat, vegetable oil and other global food commodities. and Turkey brokered last summer to allow shipments of food from the Black Sea region after Russia's invasion of its neighbor worsened a global food crisis. The suspension marks the end of an accord that the U.N.
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