US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said Washington “strongly urges” the Russian government to resume its participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative and “completely comply with the agreements.”
Blinken’s statement, released by the State Department, dismisses that the failure to implement the agreement will have a direct impact on low- and middle-income countries and world food prices, as well as exacerbate humanitarian crises and food security.
Washington “urges all parties to continue this critical life-saving initiative.”
As reported, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced the withdrawal of Moscow from the agreements on the export of grain from the ports of Ukraine. They claim that allegedly Ukraine, with the participation of British specialists, carried out an attack “against the ships of the Black Sea Fleet and civilian ships involved in ensuring the security of the” grain corridor “.
On July 22, representatives of Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the UN signed an agreement in Istanbul on the creation of a sea corridor for the export of Ukrainian grain from the ports of Chornomorsk, Odessa and Yuzhny for a period of 120 days.
Washington hopes that China will exert the necessary influence on the Russian Federation in connection with the events in Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday.
“We believe China in particular has a responsibility to use its influence with President Putin and to defend the international rules and principles that it professes to support,” he said.
At the same time, Blinken recalled that the events in Ukraine will be one of the topics of a telephone conversation scheduled for Friday between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“President Biden will be speaking to President Xi tomorrow and will make clear that China will bear responsibility for any actions it takes to support Russia’s aggression, and we will not hesitate to impose costs,” Blinken said.
Later, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that the conversation between Biden and Xi Jinping would clarify China’s attitude towards the situation in Ukraine.
“This is an opportunity for President Biden to assess where President Xi stands,” she said.
Washington is ready to welcome any option to de-escalate tensions on the border between Russia and Ukraine, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price has said at a briefing.
“De-escalation can take many forms. We would welcome any of it,” Price said, answering a question in what form Washington imagines the de-escalation of tensions.
In particular, according to him, the start of de-escalation could be considered both the withdrawal of troops from the border with Ukraine and the change in Russian rhetoric on the Ukrainian topic.
U.S. President Joe Biden did not change his opinion that the Russian Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is a factor of instability for Ukraine and Europe, but, being unable to prevent its completion, the U.S. administration turned its attention to mitigating the negative consequences of its completion, the Voice of America said with reference to a representative of the U.S. State Department.
“The idea of reaching the joint statement with Germany was recognizing the reality of the complete – the near completion of the pipeline itself, understanding that aggressive action by the United States would likely not have changed the outcome and perhaps only would have delayed it. So looking at reality, understanding it, and fashioning something with an arrangement with Germany that would allow us to continue to defend the significant interests that Europe has, that the United States have to defend the security of Ukraine while addressing and mitigating the bad effects and the threats that Nord Stream 2 could pose,” the U.S. Department of State quoted Amos Hochstein, senior advisor for global energy security, as saying.
The senior U.S. official also stressed that Washington is in contact with European countries and Ukraine regarding the search for mechanisms that would alleviate the risks that may arise in the winter.
Hochstein also noted that the world is on the verge of transition to cleaner energy and expressed hope that in the future Ukraine would retain its historical role in the supply of energy resources to Europe.
In his opinion, the factor of this will be investments in Ukraine, indicated by the joint statement of the United States and Germany, and the integration of Ukraine into the European power grid.
United States President Joe Biden, during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said the partnership between Kyiv and Washington will strengthen in the future.
“I am pleased to welcome President Zelensky to the Oval Office in the White House. During the celebration of the 30th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence, the partnership between our countries is stronger than ever and will become even stronger,” Biden said during talks with Zelensky, the video of which made public by the Dom television channel in Telegram.
He also said that Ukraine and the United States have common values and goals, in particular, regarding the provision of peace and stability in Europe.
“Ukraine and the United States have common values. We are unswervingly committed to our long-term goal for Europe: to make it whole, free and peaceful,” the U.S. President said.
The U.S. administration will soon announce the dates of the visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Washington, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has said.
“The dates are not yet known. We were offered the end of July, but we have not yet received specific days when this visit will take place. However, we are waiting for confirmation of the date soon. The U.S. administration is already actively working with us to prepare this visit,” Kuleba told journalists on the sidelines of the Ukraine 30. International Relations forum in Kyiv on Monday.
According to him, the focus of the visit will be the issue of security, that is, the Normandy format, Donbas, Crimea, the issue of U.S. investments in Ukraine and the trade development, as well as the issue of reforms in Ukraine.
“But besides the meeting with the U.S. administration, there will be many other events. There will be contacts through the IMF, there will be meetings with the community, with American business. Therefore, this is not just a visit to President Biden – this is a visit to the United States in a broad sense,” the Minister of Foreign Affairs said.
As reported, Biden invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to visit Washington this summer.
