The UN “washed of hands” due to the shelling of the port in Odesa, but then row back of
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine stated that the UN dissociated itself from the comment of an unnamed official about the alleged right of the Russians to shoot at the port of Odesa, if the targets under attack are not involved in the export of grain.
The spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Oleg Nikolenko said this.
“An allegedly unnamed source at the UN claims that the Russian Federation technically did not violate the grain agreement signed in Istanbul with a missile attack on the port of Odesa. They said that Russia did not promise not to fire at those parts of Ukrainian ports that are not directly involved in the export of grain. To put it mildly, such a position surprised us,” – Nikolenko noted.
He emphasized that the words of the unnamed official are inconsistent with the statement of Secretary General António Guterres, who unconditionally condemned the shelling of Odesa port.
Nikolenko added that the international community, which clearly pointed out Russia’s violation of its obligations within the framework of ensuring the safe functioning of the port infrastructure for the export of grain, was unanimous.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine immediately turned to the leadership of the UN for clarification, and today received an assurance that the unofficial comment of an “unnamed source” to The New York Times does not reflect the position of the UN.
“Only the statement of Secretary-General Guterres reflects the organization’s position,” – Oleg Nikolenko said.
“That’s the problem with these unnamed sources: they launched a provocative narrative, but there was no accountability. It was done intentionally or unintentionally — the question is open,” added the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
- On July 22, 2022, Ukraine, Turkey, and the UN Secretary General signed an agreement on grain export. For its part, Russia signed a mirror agreement.
- Later, the Ministry of Infrastructure stated that the Black Sea port could be the first to operate as part of the blockade, and the first ship could pass through the unblocked corridors within four days.
- On July 23, the Russians launched a massive missile attack on Odesa, which set the seaport on fire. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine stated that the shelling of Odesa is a spit of Russian President Vladimir Putin in the face of the UN Secretary General and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
