A Ukrainian sabotage group has blown up the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline in the Kharkov region, and there are victims among the civilian population, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.
"On June 5, at about 09:00 pm Moscow time, in the area of the village of Masyutovka, Kharkov region, a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group blew up the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline," the ministry said in a statement.
The Russian Defense Ministry called the explosion of the ammonia pipeline a terrorist attack. It was noted that there are victims among the civilian population. All of them "received the necessary medical care."
"Currently, ammonia residues are being drained from the Ukrainian territory through the damaged sections of the pipeline. There are no casualties among Russian military personnel," the ministry said.
The Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline is designed to pump ammonia from Russia through Ukraine for export. It was built in the late 70s. About 2.5 million tons of raw materials were transferred annually through the pipeline. Transit was stopped on February 24 due to the situation around Ukraine.
The resumption of the Togliatti—Odessa ammonia pipeline's operations remains a stumbling block in the negotiations within the framework of the grain deal. The Black Sea grain initiative was brokered by the United Nations and Turkey in July 2022 to facilitate exports of Ukrainian agricultural products from Black Sea ports during the hostilities that began in February of that year.
The package agreement also includes a memorandum of understanding between Russia and the UN to unblock Russian grain and fertilizer exports via the Black Sea, which, according to Moscow, has not been implemented due to Western sanctions.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin has recently stated that the UN secretariat is speculating on the topic of the Togliatti-Odessa ammonia pipeline, trying to create the impression of some progress on the matter. He concluded that Russia's position remains unchanged — the export of ammonia is part of the existing agreements and should have started simultaneously with the transportation of Ukrainian grain.