International Relations
Interview
Florence Gaub on Navigating a Renewed Conflict in the Middle East – INTERVIEW
3 October 2024
28 July 2023
Pressed on the battlefield, Russia has bombed grain infrastructure in Odesa and other Ukrainian ports to cut it from the global grain market, reestablish its dominance in Africa and drive a wedge between Kyiv and some of its key Western supporters.
Russia’s recent withdrawal from the Black Sea grain deal and its bombardment of port and storage facilities in Odesa and Danube ports vital for Ukraine food exports have been long in the making as Moscow struggles to stop Ukrainian counter-offensive.
The objective is to eject Ukraine out of the global food market but also to put a strain on Ukraine’s relations with its neighbours such as Poland, which, for domestic political reasons, opposes redirecting Ukraine’s grain towards Europe.