The Office of the Prosecutor General says the damage caused by Russia’s attacks and theft of Ukrainian grain has exceeded $726 million, though this figure is not final.
Russia is blackmailing the global community with the real possibility of creating famine in other countries. Due to attacks on grain and port infrastructure, many African and Asian countries that relied on Ukrainian grain are now at risk, claims the Ukrainian agency.
“Ukraine has been and remains one of the key suppliers to the World Food Programme,” stated Yurii Bielousov, Head of the Department for Combating Crimes Committed in Armed Conflict at the Office of the Prosecutor General during the United for Justice conference.
The Prosecutor’s Office highlighted two periods of Russian attacks on agricultural infrastructure linked to the “grain deal.”
“Before the agreement was signed, the attacks were carried out with artillery systems in frontline areas, with the most affected sites in the Mykolaiv (59) and Kherson (78) regions. After Ukraine refused the threatening terms of the aggressor country, the scale of the strikes expanded. First and foremost, Odesa and Odesa Oblast, which has the most powerful and developed infrastructure, has become the primary target of strikes,” Bielousov noted.
Since then, Russia has used a wide range of different weapons to target grain, including Shahed drones, Iskander ballistic missiles, tactical aviation missiles, and sea- and land-based missiles.
“The attacks indicate a well-coordinated Russian policy. Various branches of the military are involved in these attacks, and the decisions to carry out synchronized strikes are made by the highest military-political leadership of the Russian Federation,” Bielousov emphasized.
He further noted that Russia is trying to deprive Ukrainians of the means to survive: attempting to steal grain or, if that fails, to destroy it.
Bielousov added that, so far, the damages Ukraine has suffered due to the looting of its grain are estimated at over $726 million.
Given the scale of such crimes, it is evident that such actions constitute at least a crime against humanity and, in a broader perspective, include an element of genocide, which is aimed at creating conditions for the physical destruction of a nation.
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