The European Union (EU) has significantly increased grain imports from Russia despite the bloc's sanctions against the country, Eurostat reported.
In September 2023 alone, the EU increased its imports of Russian grain by 22% compared to August to 180,000 tonnes, almost 10 times more than in the same month last year. This is the highest figure since the Ukraine conflict and the Western sanctions imposed on Russia.
The EU increased its imports of Russian grain in September 2023 to 180,000 tons, nearly 10 times higher than the same period last year. (Photo: RT)
Ukraine remained the largest grain supplier to the EU during the period, with 1.2 million tonnes, down a quarter from the same period last year. Brazil came in second with 1.1 million tonnes, followed by Türkiye with 204,000 tonnes. Canada rounded out the top five with 139,000 tonnes.
Eurostat statistics also show that the EU has increased its imports of Russian fertilizers in recent months. According to the data, in the period from July to September, the share of Russian fertilizer imports in the EU increased again to 27%, equivalent to the third quarter of 2021.
While neither Russian grain nor fertilizer is directly sanctioned by the West, their exports have been hampered in recent months by financial, shipping and insurance restrictions imposed on Moscow. Russia has repeatedly called for these restrictions to be lifted.
The EU has imposed 11 rounds of Ukraine-related sanctions on Russia since the start of 2022, restricting its access to technology and markets. The bloc’s total purchases from Russia have fallen nearly fivefold since the sanctions were imposed, falling from 9.5% in February 2022 to 2% in September 2023.
Meanwhile, Russia has redirected much of its trade to Asia, primarily to India and China.
Tra Khanh (Source: russian.rt.com)
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