New York, 20 July 2023 (dpa/MIA) - UN Secretary General António Guterres on Thursday condemned "in the strongest terms" the repeated Russian attacks on the port of Odessa and other Ukrainian cities on the Black Sea.

He told the world body that the attacks "contradict" Russia's commitments made with the UN in a memorandum of understanding.

Ukraine said the attacks destroyed 60,000 tons of grain being stored on the Black Sea coast.

The UN also criticized on Thursday Russia's suspension of an agreement to export Ukrainian grain from the Black Sea, saying it was already having a negative impact on global wheat and maize prices.

That document Russia signed states "that the Russian Federation will facilitate the unimpeded export of food, sunflower oil and fertilizers from Ukrainian controlled Black Sea ports.”

This hurts everyone, "but especially vulnerable people in the global South."

The UN Security Council is to discuss the provisional end of the grain agreement in a special session on Friday at 10 am (1400 GMT).

Photo: MIA archive