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Russia Says It Will Only Renew Grain Deal If Its Own Exports Are Unblocked

Vessels are seen as they await inspection under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the United Nations and Türkiye, in the southern anchorage of the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Türkiye, December 11, 2022. (Reuters)
Vessels are seen as they await inspection under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the United Nations and Türkiye, in the southern anchorage of the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Türkiye, December 11, 2022. (Reuters)
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Russia Says It Will Only Renew Grain Deal If Its Own Exports Are Unblocked

Vessels are seen as they await inspection under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the United Nations and Türkiye, in the southern anchorage of the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Türkiye, December 11, 2022. (Reuters)
Vessels are seen as they await inspection under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the United Nations and Türkiye, in the southern anchorage of the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Türkiye, December 11, 2022. (Reuters)

Russia said on Wednesday it would only agree to extend the Black Sea grain deal, which allows grain to be safely exported from Ukrainian ports, if the interests of its own agricultural producers are taken into account.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the United Nations and Türkiye last year, expires on March 18 and cannot be extended unless all parties agree. Russia has already signaled it is unhappy with aspects of the deal.

Russia's agricultural exports have not been explicitly targeted by Western sanctions, but Moscow says restrictions on its payments, logistics and insurance industries are a "barrier" to it being able to export its own grains and fertilizers.

Moscow's foreign ministry said on Wednesday that Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had discussed the prospects for renewing the deal at a meeting with his Turkish counterpart on the sidelines of the G20 in New Delhi.

"(The) Russian side stressed that continuing the package agreement on grain is possible only if the interests of Russian agricultural and fertilizer producers in terms of unhindered access to world markets are taken into account," the ministry said in a statement.

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World

First Ukrainian Military Plant Starts Operations in Britain, Ukraine’s Ambassador Says 

Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Kingdom, speaks on stage as people gather in Trafalgar Square to mark the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in London, Britain, February 24, 2026. (Reuters) 
Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Kingdom, speaks on stage as people gather in Trafalgar Square to mark the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in London, Britain, February 24, 2026. (Reuters) 
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First Ukrainian Military Plant Starts Operations in Britain, Ukraine’s Ambassador Says 

Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Kingdom, speaks on stage as people gather in Trafalgar Square to mark the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in London, Britain, February 24, 2026. (Reuters) 
Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Kingdom, speaks on stage as people gather in Trafalgar Square to mark the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in London, Britain, February 24, 2026. (Reuters) 

The first Ukrainian drone production plant has started its operations in Britain, Ukraine's ambassador Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said on Wednesday.

"Ukraine is ‌fighting a ‌war amid ‌constant ⁠missile strikes, infrastructure destruction ⁠and threats to production facilities. Therefore, the launch of production in the ⁠UK has a ‌deep strategic ‌logic," Zaluzhnyi ‌said on the ‌Telegram app.

"This is not a shift of the center ‌of gravity away from Ukraine. It ⁠is ⁠an expansion of our joint capabilities and the creation of a second line of defense that guarantees continuity of production."

World

Ukrainian Attack on Russian Fertilizer Plant Kills Seven 

Local residents walk past heated tents during a power outage in Odesa on February 18, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
Local residents walk past heated tents during a power outage in Odesa on February 18, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Ukrainian Attack on Russian Fertilizer Plant Kills Seven 

Local residents walk past heated tents during a power outage in Odesa on February 18, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
Local residents walk past heated tents during a power outage in Odesa on February 18, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

A Ukrainian drone attack on a fertilizer plant in Russia's western Smolensk region killed seven people and wounded 10 others, Russian officials said Wednesday.

The plant, just outside the Russian town of Dorogobuzh, lies around 290 kilometers (180 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

Unverified images published on social media purported to show the plant in flames early Wednesday, with columns of smoke billowing into the night sky.

"The enemy struck PJSC Dorogobuzh, a civilian plant producing nitrogen fertilizer," Smolensk region governor Vasily Anokhin said in a post on Telegram.

Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said later seven people were killed, updating a previous toll, in what would be one of the deadliest attacks on a Russian industrial site of the four-year war.

Ukraine fired "at least 30 drones equipped with explosive devices," causing "significant damage" it said in a statement.

Rescuers had on Wednesday morning contained the fires, while authorities were considering evacuating residents from the neighboring village for their safety, governor Anokhin added.

The plant was also attacked in December last year, according to Russian media reports.

Ukraine, which denies targeting civilians, did not immediately comment.

Ukraine has fired thousands of drones over the Russian border since Moscow launched its Ukraine offensive in 2022, some of which have landed hundreds of kilometers from the front line.

The strikes often target Russia's oil and gas industry and other industrial sites and have caused billions of dollars of damage.

Kyiv says the attacks are fair retaliation for Russian strikes on its own civilians that have killed hundreds and crippled Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

World

Pope Leo to Tour Four African Countries in First Major Overseas Trip of 2026 

Pope Leo XIV waves to the crowd during the weekly general audience at St Peter's Square in The Vatican on February 18, 2026. (AFP)
Pope Leo XIV waves to the crowd during the weekly general audience at St Peter's Square in The Vatican on February 18, 2026. (AFP)
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Pope Leo to Tour Four African Countries in First Major Overseas Trip of 2026 

Pope Leo XIV waves to the crowd during the weekly general audience at St Peter's Square in The Vatican on February 18, 2026. (AFP)
Pope Leo XIV waves to the crowd during the weekly general audience at St Peter's Square in The Vatican on February 18, 2026. (AFP)

Pope Leo will visit four countries across Africa from April 13-23, the Vatican announced on Wednesday, with the pontiff making his first major overseas trip in 2026. 

The pope will also make a one-day visit on March 28 to Monaco, the microstate on the French Riviera, and will visit Spain from ‌June 6-12, ‌the Vatican said. 

In Africa, Leo ‌will ⁠visit Algeria, Angola, ⁠Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon. He is expected to draw large crowds, urge world leaders to support development on the continent, and highlight efforts at Catholic-Muslim dialogue. 

Leo, elected in May to succeed the late Pope Francis as head of the 1.4-billion-member Church, has made ⁠only one overseas trip so far, visiting ‌Türkiye and Lebanon in ‌November and December on a visit originally organized for ‌Francis. 

Vatican officials and African Church leaders say the upcoming ‌papal tour in Africa is a sign of the priority the Church places on the continent. 

About 20% of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics live on the continent, according to Vatican statistics. 

Wednesday's Vatican announcement did not give full programs for the pope's upcoming trips, only naming the countries he will be visiting. 

As part of the trip to Spain, Leo is expected to visit the Canary Islands, which has become a major point of entry for migrants trying to get to Europe.