From there a joint inspection by Ukrainian, Russian, Turkish and U.N. negotiated the Black Sea Grain Initiative, enabling cargo ships to pass safely out of Ukrainian ports to the Bosporus Strait. Hope arrived in July 2022: Turkey and the U.N. Food prices soared as millions of tons of grain exports were stranded for five months. Russian forces imposed a naval blockade on Ukrainian ports, immediately engulfing the world in a food security crisis. Ukraine had been one of the world's largest exporters of grain and sunflower oil, which reached hundreds of millions of people in low-resource countries. The Ukraine grain crisis unfolded in March 2022, when Russia invaded its neighbor. On Tuesday, Moscow launched a barrage of missiles against the Ukrainian port city of Odessa, a key export point for grain. Moscow blamed the incident on Ukraine but said the attack was unconnected to the termination of the grain deal. Monday's withdrawal announcement came hours after explosions damaged a bridge connecting Russia with the annexed Crimean peninsula. By Wednesday afternoon Russia announced that all ships in the Black Sea bound for Ukrainian ports will be considered potential military cargo starting Wednesday. On Monday morning after the announcement, Chicago wheat futures – a global benchmark for prices – briefly jumped around 3% before falling later in the day. Grain prices have been fluctuating since. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that Russia's withdrawal "will strike a blow to people in need everywhere." The Kenyan government was quick to denounce the withdrawal as a "stab in the back" for drought-hit nations in the Horn of Africa. The Kremlin's move immediately sparked concern, particularly in food insecure countries. The arrangement had been in place since July 2022. On July 17 the Russian government announced that it was pulling out of a deal to facilitate the export of millions of tons of grain from Ukrainian ports. The country's grain exports were curtailed this week when Russia pulled out of a deal that allowed grain-laden ships to sail out of Ukrainian ports. Anti-tank obstacles on a wheat field at a farm in southern Ukraine's Mykolaiv region.
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