Moscow, 17 July 2023 (dpa/MIA) - Russia is pulling out of the international deal that allows grain exports from war-torn Ukraine, and said it will only renew the agreement once conditions relating to Russian produce are met, a Kremlin spokesman said on Monday.

The deal is due to expire late on Monday night (2100 GMT) after several extensions. The Kremlin had previously indicated that it wasn't satisfied with the way it was being implemented.

Ukraine and Russia are two of the world's biggest grain exporters to countries in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia. Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine, which began in February 2022, pushed up grain prices around the world.

The deal was struck to help secure supply for countries that rely on grain from the war-torn region.

After starting the war, Russia blocked Ukraine's Black Sea ports for months, preventing the export of sea-borne grain and prompting fears of soaring prices or famine in some areas.

The agreement allowed Ukraine to ship millions of tons of grain across the Black Sea.

On Sunday, possibly one of the last ships cleared for travel under the Black Sea deal set off from the port of Odessa in southern Ukraine.

According to the United Nations, it is loaded with more than 15,000 tons of rapeseed.

The Kremlin is demanding an easing of sanctions on Russian food and fertilizer exports.

Many other governments, as well as the UN, are appealing to Russia to renew the agreement.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied that Monday's attack on the Kerch bridge to the annexed peninsula of Crimea had any impact on the future of the grain agreement.

"These are two unrelated events. You know that even before the terrorist attack, the position was voiced by [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin," he said.

The bridge was attacked by overwater drones early on Monday morning, the Russian authorities said. The bridge spans a 19-kilometre stretch over the Kerch Strait and is the only link that does not run through the war zone.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said he thinks Putin still intends to renew the grain deal.

"I believe Russian President Putin wants continuation of this humanitarian bridge, despite today's statement," Erdoğan told reporters in Istanbul, referring to the earlier Kremlin comments.

Erdoğan said he would hold talks with his Russian counterpart ahead of Putin's anticipated visit to Turkey in August, in remarks made ahead of a two-day Gulf tour to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.

An agreement to extend the grain deal "without interruptions" could still be possible before Putin's visit in August, Erdoğan said, adding that negotiations were under way.

Photo: MIA archive