War in Ukraine: Ukrainian-Russian grain deal could be extended last November

Here is the latest news about Russia’s war in Ukraine:

1. Ukraine’s grain deal could be extended last November

A senior UN official said a deal to return Ukrainian grain and Russian grain and fertilizer to world markets is likely to be extended beyond mid-November.

However, the Russian ambassador to the UN said that Moscow needs to first see the movement of its own exports.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has cut off grain and fertilizer supplies from two of the world’s main suppliers, leading to food shortages and rising prices, especially in developing countries.

The deal, brokered by the UN and Turkey in July, shipped more than 8.5 million metric tons of food from Ukraine’s three Black Sea ports, but it expires in November, necessitating discussion of an extension.

“This is important for the market. This is important for just continuity. And I’m still relatively optimistic that we’re going to get it. We are hard at work,” said UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths, who was in Moscow earlier this month for talks, including an extension of the agreement.

However, Russia said the hurdles to be overcome for Russian grain and fertilizer to enter world markets remain the same as in July: ship insurance, financial transactions, search for ports of call for Russian ships, and release of fertilizer on ships. detained in European ports.

Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya told reporters that “Russia needs to see the export of its grain and fertilizers to the world market, which has never happened since the beginning of the deal.”

On Saturday, the Ukrainian president accused Russia of artificially creating a line of about 150 ships to slow down supplies from Ukraine.

2. The battle for Kherson looms

Ukrainian troops are surviving repeated attacks by Russian forces in two eastern cities, Avdiivka and Bakhmut, while troops on the southern front are poised to fight for the strategic Kherson region, which Russia appears to be reinforcing.

Radio intercepts showed that newly mobilized recruits were sent to the front, and Russian troops were firmly dug in.

Meanwhile, the Russian-appointed government of the Kherson region said it had relocated to the left bank of the Dnieper, Russian news agency RIA reported, as forces prepare to intensify fighting.

Russia is evacuating civilians on the west bank but says it has no plans to withdraw its troops.

Ukrainian forces advanced along the Dnieper in a dramatic offensive in the south earlier this month, but progress appears to have slowed.

Oleksiy Reznikov, Ukraine’s defense minister, said wet weather and rugged terrain make Kyiv’s counteroffensive in Kherson more difficult than in the northeast, where it pushed back Russia in September.

3. Russian Forces May Hit Back at Commercial Satellites

According to a Russian Foreign Ministry official, commercial satellites of the US and its allies could become legitimate targets for Russia if they become involved in the war in Ukraine.

“Quasi-civilian infrastructure can be a legitimate target for a retaliatory strike,” Konstantin Vorontsov, deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s non-proliferation and arms control department, was quoted by TASS.

“We are talking about the involvement of civil space infrastructure components, including commercial ones, by the United States and its allies in armed conflicts,” he added.