Russia Pulls Out of Grain Deal Vital to World Food Prices

Two big developments Monday in the Russia-Ukraine war: Russia has pulled out of an international agreement to let Ukraine export its grain, and an important Russian bridge in the Crimean peninsula again came under attack. Details:

• Grain deal: Moscow said Monday the grain deal has been "terminated," though it held open the possibility that it would reenter the pact if it can negotiate better terms, reports the Wall Street Journal. Under the pact brokered by Turkey last year, Russia allowed Ukraine to ship corn, wheat, and other goods from three Black Sea ports. The stakes: The deal is "seen as essential to keeping global food prices stable," per the New York Times. Nations in Africa and the Middle East in particular rely heavily on Ukraine's grain. Russia has said it views the deal as lopsided in Ukraine's favor and has called for better guarantees of its own exports.

• The bridge: A Russian-controlled bridge that connects Russia to the Crimean peninsula once again came under attack on Monday. Moscow says Ukraine used sea drones to bomb the Kerch Bridge, reports the AP. Ukrainian media is reporting the claim is true, per Reuters. Monday's attack wasn't as damaging as a larger one in October that stunned Russia. Ukrainian official Mykhailo Podolyak appeared to reference the attack in a statement, notes the BBC: "Any illegal structures used to deliver Russian instruments of mass murder are necessarily short-lived—regardless of the reasons for the destruction," he wrote on Twitter.
• A link? It wasn't immediately clear if the two developments were related. The grain deal was due to expire Monday anyway, and Russia had been threatening to pull out in the days leading to the deadline to renew it. But Russia also previously paused the grain deal after the October strike on the bridge, notes the Journal.

(More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)