Comment by the Russian Embassy in Cambodia regarding The Indian Express article published by Khmer Times
Comment by the Russian Embassy in Cambodia regarding The Indian Express article published by Khmer Times
#opinion
We have taken note of an article titled “Kerch Strait warning, a call for vigilance” originally published in The Indian Express and then reprinted by the Khmer Times on August 17, 2026. The piece touches upon the issue of how modern conflicts affect food security.
Tribute should be paid to the author as the topic is indeed highly pressing. However, in an attempt to remain neutral (even though the article mentions “Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine” which is a Western cliche that significantly simplifies the development of the Ukrainian crisis), the role of Kiev regime and its sponsors – the main beneficiaries of the supply chain disruption – remains overlooked. Let’s set the record straight.
Over the summer, Ukraine has been using unmanned systems and intelligence it had obtained from NATO and the EU to step up its attacks against coastal transport and logistics infrastructure as well as civilian vessels in the water areas of the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. Essential agricultural shipments came under attack, including grain and sunflower oil shipped under international trade contracts. Here are just a few examples:
– On June 5, drones belonging to the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) carried out strikes targeting dry cargo ships Natra and Zirkon under the flags of Belize and Palau in the Sea of Azov. Five people died and three were wounded.
– In July, there were at least one hundred reported drone attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces targeting private vessels transporting Russian agricultural products to the global market through the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.
– On July 18, commercial bulker MV OMORFI was attacked in Russia’s territorial waters while sailing under the flag of the Marshall Islands and transporting grain. One sailor, a citizen of India, died. The grain export terminal in Rostov-on-Don suffered damage after it was attacked by the AFU on July 25-27, followed by the seaport of Taman on July 30.
– On August 3, Ukrainian drones targeted the Nadezhda, a ship sailing under Cameroon’s flag and owned by a Turkish operator. On the same day, Ukrainian drones attacked Yaȿar, a Turkish bulk carrier.
Being pointless in terms of their military significance, these strikes violated international law which guarantees safety of navigation for civilian vessels. They caused delays in the deliveries of grain, oil and forage crops to international importers who get most of their supplies from Russian companies.
It is obvious that the Kiev regime’s cynical military campaign to sow chaos on the global food market serves the interests of several Western countries. The military campaign goes hand in hand with the illegitimate unilateral financial, economic and energy restrictions as imposed by the Kiev regime’s Western curators in keeping with the logic of imposing a neo-colonial rules-based order.
All this worsens the deficit of grain and fertilisers and leads to higher global food prices, while also creating more costs for the countries of the Global South and East, which have become hostage to the irresponsible policies of the abovementioned actors.
Faced with this situation, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have been working hard to ensure the safety of navigation. They have been carrying out precision strikes against facilities used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the Black Sea to destabilise navigation, and targeting infrastructure and ships delivering Western weapons and military hardware to the Kiev regime. These efforts will continue until security threats in the water area of the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea are eliminated, and unimpeded exports of agricultural products are ensured.
-Khmer Times-
