India unlikely to join Kyiv grain initiative

Sandeep Dikshit

New Delhi, December 29

Despite high-level conversations, including between NSA Ajit Doval and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s close aide Andriy Yermak, India is unlikely to join the Ukraine ‘grain corridor’, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday, pointing out that India had in place bilateral mechanisms to extend foodgrain assistance to countries in need.

“We have been extending assistance to countries from the South bilaterally. I don’t have any clarity if we will join, probably not. Our focus has been on bilateral South-South mechanisms,” said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi. “As of now, I don’t have intimation that we are looking to join this initiative,” he added.

Ukraine said it had helped ease high cooking oil prices in India by sending 37,500 tonnes of sunflower oil in the last few weeks. The Initiative on the Safe Transportation of Grain and Foodstuffs from Ukrainian ports (Black Sea Grain Initiative), is an agreement between Russia and Ukraine made with Turkey and the UN.

The MEA’s observations come against the backdrop of Ukraine reaching out to India on several fronts to wean it away from Russia as indirect western efforts led by the US and the UK have had no impact on South Block’s position on the conflict.

According to Zelenskyy’s official website, Doval and Yermak spoke on December 8 and discussed the “grain from Ukraine” initiative.