(Bloomberg) — Turkey and Russia have reached a tentative deal to restart Ukrainian agricultural shipments from a key Black Sea port, but Kyiv remains skeptical of the proposed pact, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was prevented from visiting Serbia after that country’s neighbors banned his flight from their airspace.
India, meanwhile, is in talks to boost crude imports from Rosneft PJSC as refiners in Asia’s second-biggest oil market have been enjoying a windfall from discounted Russian oil.
The UK plans to send rocket systems to Ukraine that will let it strike locations as far as 80 kilometers (50 miles) away, less than a week after the US said it would provide similar weapons.
Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to strike new targets in Ukraine if longer-range missiles are delivered.
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Key Developments
(All times in CET)
- Ukraine’s Tactics Show Smaller Countries How to Fight Back
- Putin Critic Kallas Needs New Allies to Stay in Power in Estonia
- China’s Yuan-Ruble Trading Volumes Fail to Match Russian Frenzy
- Oil Tankers Make Rare Mid-Atlantic Switch of Russian Crude Cargo
- Ukraine Migration Maps ‘What’s Possible’ for Climate Displaced
Latvia Bans 80 Russian TV Channels Until War Ends (2:01 p.m.)
Latvia banned the remaining 80 Russian-registered TV channels operating there from broadcasting until Russia ends its war in Ukraine and returns Crimea to Kyiv’s control, the Leta news service reported, citing Ivars Abolins, the chairman of the National Electronic Mass Media Council.
The Baltic country, which neighbors Russia and has a large Russian-speaking minority, is one of Europe’s harshest critics of the war in Ukraine.
Abolins said Monday that Latvia had given a broadcasting license to TV Rain, an independent Russian TV channel that was banned by Moscow in March.
Read more: Putin’s Crackdown Pushes Independent Russian Media Into Crypto
Serbian Leader Decries Derailing of Lavrov Visit (1:42 p.m.)
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who was supposed to host Lavrov this week in Belgrade, said he was displeased how neighboring countries prevented the visit by banning Lavrov’s flight from their airspace.
Still, Lavrov will soon meet his Serbian counterpart, Nikola Selakovic, at an undisclosed location and time, Vucic said.
In Moscow, Lavrov called the move by Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Montenegro to block him from their airspace “unprecedented.”
Lavrov is a great and proven friend” of Serbia, Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin said in separate comments in Belgrade.
“Serbia is proud of not being part of the anti-Russia hysteria,” Vulin said.
Russian Car Sales at Record Low as Sanctions Sting (12:39 p.m.)
Russian car sales plunged 84% in May, as sanctions and international isolation brought an industry that had once been a showcase for foreign investment to a near standstill.
Fewer than 25,000 vehicles were sold last month, according to the Association of European Businesses, the lowest since at least 2006 and less than a tenth of the monthly levels seen in peak months in the past.
Read more: Russian Car Sales Collapse as Isolation Hits Once-Hot Industry
India in Talks to Increase Oil Imports From Rosneft (12:21 p.m.)
India is looking to boost Russian oil imports, with state-owned refiners eager to take more heavily-discounted supplies from Rosneft after Europe enacted a partial ban.
State processors are collectively working on securing new six-month supply contracts for Russian crude to India, according to people with knowledge of the companies’ procurement plans.
They are in talks with Rosneft, Russia’s state-owned oil champion, with the seller set to handle shipping and insurance matters, they said.
China and India have snapped up millions of barrels of Russian crude to take advantage of hefty discounts as sanctions by the US, UK and European Union have caused most western buyers to stop buying oil from the country.
Read more: India in Talks to Increase Russian Oil Imports From Rosneft
Ukraine Skeptical of Turkey-Russia Deal to Ship Grain (11:31 a.m.)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government has offered military help to clear mines off the coast of Odesa and escort grain ships but Ukraine has yet to endorse the plan, worried that removing defenses could leave the vital port open to Russian attack, people familiar with the deal said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss matters that aren’t yet public.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is expected to hold talks in Ankara on the plan on Wednesday.
It remains unclear whether Ukraine will send a representative. “By commenting in advance on reaching the deal, Russia is seeking to shift responsibility to Ukraine” for disrupting supplies, Ukraine’s Deputy Economy Minister Taras Kachka said.
The Kremlin’s invasion has cut off shipments of grain and other farm products from Ukraine, threatening millions of people in its traditional markets with food shortages.
Moscow has denied responsibility for the disruption but demanded relief from US and European sanctions limiting its exports of fertilizer and agricultural products.
Read more: Ukraine Cautious as Turkey, Russia Push Black Sea Grain Deal
Ukraine Says Russian General Killed (8:31 a.m.)
Russian Major General Roman Kutuzov was killed, Ukraine’s army said on its Facebook page.
Earlier, Meduza reported Kutuzov died in fighting in the Luhansk region, citing a journalist for Russian state-run television station. Russia’s Defense Ministry hasn’t commented.
UK to Send Rocket Systems (12:01 a.m.)
The UK is to send multiple-launch rocket systems to Ukraine, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace announced.
The move has been coordinated closely with the US decision to send the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System variant of MLRS to Ukraine, where forces have requested longer-range precision weapons.
“As Russia’s tactics change, so must our support to Ukraine,” Wallace said.
“These highly capable multiple-launch rocket systems will enable our Ukrainian friends to better protect themselves against the brutal use of long-range artillery, which Putin’s forces have used indiscriminately to flatten cities.”
The M270 weapons system, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, can strike targets up to 80 kilometers (50 miles) away with high accuracy, according to a statement released by the Ministry of Defence.
The UK will also supply M31A1 munitions “at scale.”
Russia Seeks Buyers for Plundered Grain, New York Times Says (12:01 a.m.)
The US has told more than a dozen countries that Putin’s government is trying to sell plundered wheat from Ukraine to drought-stricken African nations, the New York Times reported citing a diplomatic cable.
The paper said that in mid-May, the US sent a notification to 14 countries, mostly in Africa, of Russian cargo vessels leaving ports near Ukraine laden with what the cable said was “stolen Ukrainian grain.”
Ukraine has accused Russia of looting grain in occupied areas and selling it abroad, and local traders have said Russian troops have confiscated grain, equipment and fertilizers in occupied areas in the country’s southeast.
Read more: Egypt Says It Refused Undocumented Ukrainian Grain Shipment
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