The Pentagon said that the United States does not have military capabilities in the Black Sea
The United States of America does not seek war with Russia and does not have military capabilities in the Black Sea. This was announced on August 15 at a briefing by Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh.
So she answered the question about the possibility of "military solutions" for the export of Ukrainian grain.
"We [the US] do not have any funds in the Black Sea. <...> We have clearly stated that we do not seek war with Russia. There are military operations in which we support Ukraine. But at the moment I have nothing to announce regarding the Black Sea or any provision for the movement of ships," Singh said.
She also reported that at the moment there are no announcements or decisions that could be made public.
Earlier in the day, The Wall Street Journal newspaper, citing sources in the US administration, reported that the US is exploring options to ensure the export of agricultural products from Ukraine through the Danube ports in the amount of about 4 million tons per month, not excluding "military solutions" to protect ships.
It is not specified which options and "military solutions" are being discussed, as well as which countries are planned to be involved in solving this problem. However, according to the newspaper's source, negotiations are allegedly underway with Turkey itself, Ukraine and Kiev's neighbors.
On July 25, the representative of the European Commission (EC) Miriam Garcia said that the European Union (EU) is discussing with Ukraine alternative ways to export grain to the Black Sea, discussions are also underway on the way through the Baltic ports.
The former commander of the North Atlantic Alliance forces in Europe, retired Admiral of the US Navy James Stavridis, said on July 21 that the United States and the countries of the bloc can accompany ships with cargo and, if there is a threat, open fire on Russian ships.
In turn, the Turkish newspaper Milliyet wrote that escorting cargo ships by NATO ships in the Black Sea would be a violation of the Montreux Convention, so Turkey may find itself in a risky situation.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced that starting from 0:00 on July 20, all vessels following in the Black Sea to Ukrainian ports will be considered by the department as "potential carriers of military cargo."
The day before, the adviser to the head of Zelensky's office, Mikhail Podolyak, said that no country would dare to send its ships to the ports of Ukraine after the termination of the grain deal.
The grain deal was terminated on July 17 at the initiative of Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the country is ready to return to the implementation of the agreement if the Russian part of the agreements is fulfilled.
The Black Sea deal was concluded in July 2022 in Istanbul. Then Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres signed a memorandum on facilitating the supply of Russian agricultural products and fertilizers to world markets. At the same time, the Ukrainian delegation signed an agreement with Turkey and the UN on grain exports. The main objective of the deal was to provide food to countries in need, including African ones.
