The German state is taking a 30 percent stake in the gas importer Uniper. The company has found itself in financial difficulties as a result of gas import restrictions by the Russian monopolist Gazprom and rising prices. An agreement will be presented this afternoon in the dispute over grain exports from Ukraine – but there is said to be no direct agreement between Kyiv and Moscow.
Uniper will receive EUR 15 billion from Germany, plus loans of EUR 7 billion granted by the state bank KfW. A break-up of the company is thus off the table, as confirmed by the Finnish majority owner Fortum.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) said gas importers could pass the higher purchase prices on to households from September or October. There should be a major housing benefit reform at the beginning of 2023, which also includes a flat rate for heating costs.
Agreement on Grain Exports
The agreement on Ukrainian grain exports across the Black Sea will be finalized in Istanbul this afternoon. However, according to an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Kyiv and Moscow will not sign a joint document.
Rather, both countries would conclude parallel agreements with the United Nations and Turkey, Presidential Advisor Mykhailo Podoliak wrote on Twitter. There will be no Russian representatives in Ukrainian ports and no Russian escorts of transports. Should inspections of cargo ships be necessary, these would be carried out by joint teams in Turkish waters. In the event of provocations, there will be an immediate military response.
The blockade of Ukrainian ports by Russia’s Black Sea Fleet has caused grain prices to soar around the world and sparked an international food crisis. Ukraine is one of the top grain exporters in the world.
Where is the war in Ukraine headed?
Entire cities have been razed to the ground, and civilians are also dying from Russian rockets away from the hard-fought front in eastern Ukraine: even months after Russia invaded Ukraine, there is no end in sight to the war raging in the middle of Europe. What could move Russia to peace? To what extent does diplomacy currently have any chances? Where is the war in Ukraine headed?
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