Ukraine may not be able to meet domestic and export demand for wheat in the years to come if Russia’s attacks on its export routes and facilities continue, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) has warned. “If attacks on food infrastructure and the blockage of sea export routes continue, it will dramatically impact the agricultural production outlook over years to come, and may, in a worst-case scenario, lead to wheat production being unable to meet domestic and export demand,” said the WFP’s Ukraine director Matthew Hollingworth on Tuesday. Since mid-July this year, there have been 31 documented attacks on Ukraine’s grain production and export facilities, according to an upcoming report by the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR), said Mr Hollingworth. Of these, “28 of these attacks were in Odesa oblast alone”. The province has critical Black Sea and the Danube River terminals essential for global trade, the top official told the UN Security Council (UNSC). Countering the charges, Russia’s UN envoy Vassily Nebenzia told the UNSC that Moscow only targets military infrastructure and not civilian facilities – a claim that has been questioned by Kyiv, its allies and independent experts monitoring Russia’s full-scale invasion. Before the war, Ukraine comprised nine per cent of global wheat exports, 15 per cent of maize and 44 per cent of sunflower oil, said Mr Hollingworth. The UN has blamed Russia’s invasion for sparking a worsening global food crisis that has trickled on to a domino effect on Asian and African nations reeling after the Covid-19 pandemic. Russia was actively preparing to steal grain supplies and starve the Ukrainian population of food for months before Vladimir Putin ordered last year’s invasion, according to new evidence compiled by human rights experts. When Russian tanks did roll across the border on 24 February 2022, they deliberately targeted grain-rich areas and food production infrastructure first, found the recent report by international human rights law firm Global Rights Compliance. UN officials are trying to revive the Black Sea grain deal, which Russia quit in July, a year after it was brokered by the UN and Turkey. Moscow complained that its own food and fertiliser exports faced obstacles and said not enough Ukrainian grain was going to countries in need. However, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned earlier this month that it will be difficult to revive the Black Sea deal, under which nearly 33 million metric tons of Ukraine grain were exported. This comes as Russian forces hit port infrastructure in Ukraine’s southern city of Odesa on Tuesday evening, the regional governor said. “The invaders hit the port infrastructure of Odesa. People were not injured,” Odesa governor Oleh Kiper said on Telegram. Russia used Ð¥-31 missiles, the southern military command said on Telegram. It also reported strikes on the Belgorod-Dniester district in the region, with missiles hitting open surface and administrative buildings. Read More The US and the Philippines conduct joint air, sea patrols in South China Sea not far from Taiwan Britain's Conservative government set to start cutting taxes ahead of likely election next year The White House says it's concerned Iran may provide ballistic missiles to Russia for use in Ukraine Germany's defense minister unveils more help for Ukraine's fight against Russia's invasion Poland set to get more than 5 billion euros in EU money after commission approves recovery plan NATO head says violence in Kosovo unacceptable while calling for constructive dialogue with Serbia

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Russian president Vladimir Putin is visiting Kyrgyzstan for his first trip abroad since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for him over war crimes in Ukraine. Mr Putin arrived in the central Asian nation on Thursday for a two-day state visit for bilateral meetings and a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the founding of Russia’s Kant military airbase outside Bishkek, the Kyrgyz capital. The Kremlin chief has rarely taken trips abroad since he launched what he called a “special military operation” in Ukraine in early 2022 and is not known to have stepped out of Russia since the ICC warrant was issued. The ICC issued a warrant in March on charges of overseeing the illegal deportation of children from Ukraine. Russia, which does not recognise the ICC’s jurisdiction, has rejected the warrant as “illegal” and politically motivated. But its issuing has complicated Mr Putin’s plans for international travel, seeing him miss a key summit of the Brics group of developing nations in South Africa – which is an ICC member. Mr Putin is due to travel to China next week for the third Belt and Road Forum in Beijing. Neither Kyrgyzstan nor China are members of the ICC, which was established to prosecute war crimes. During his visit to Bishkek, Mr Putin promised to continue to deliver modern weapons to its military base in Kyrgyzstan. “For my part, I would like to offer assurances that the Russian leadership will continue to pay close attention to the issues of providing the air base with advanced types of weapons, modern technology and equipment,” said Mr Putin. "This military outpost significantly contributes to boosting Kyrgyzstan’s defensive power and ensuring security and stability in the whole region of Central Asia," he added. The leader highlighted double-digit growth in Russia and Kyrgyz trade, which analysts suggest is due to violation of Western sanctions by Russian businesses. He reiterated Russia’s importance as a strong trade partner for Kyrgyzstan. “Our country is the main supplier of oil products to Kyrgyzstan, we fully supply Kyrgyz consumers with gasoline (petrol) and diesel,” Mr Putin told a briefing. “Russia is one of the leading trade partners of Kyrgyzstan. Our trade turnover grew 37 per cent last year to a record of nearly $3.5bn. In the first half of this year it grew a further 17.9 per cent,” he added. The Russian president is expected to hold a number of bilateral meetings including with Kyrgyz president Sadyr Japarov and Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev, and conclude with his attendance at a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a grouping of former Soviet nations. Moscow’s relationships with other nations in a region it has historically considered its sphere of influence have faced challenges due to Western sanctions imposed on Russia in response to the situation in Ukraine. Last week, the central bank of Kyrgyzstan called upon domestic banks to enhance their monitoring and enforcement measures to ensure better adherence to Western sanctions targeting Moscow. It comes after the US imposed sanctions on four Kyrgyz companies in July for re-exporting electronics components and other technology to Russia. Additional reporting by agencies Read More IOC bans Russian Olympic Committee for including annexed Ukraine territories Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin’s ‘exhausted’ troops ‘suffer significant losses in key town Avdiivka’ French police probe ‘poisoning’ of TV journalist who denounced Putin’s war live on air The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

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