Russia's grain exports to Iran have stalled after Saturday's US-Israeli airstrikes, sources told Reuters on Tuesday. Iran, Russia's number three grain buyer, has already bought and moved up to 95 per cent of its expected Russian wheat purchases this season.
Two sources at Russian exporting companies, who declined to be identified, said shipments of grain bound for Iran from the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea had halted. Exporters are still trying to fulfil existing contracts despite the current suspension.
"There is a need for supplies, but for now they have been suspended," one of the sources said. "I think they will be resumed at the first opportunity for both feed and food product categories," the source added.
The source noted that Iran has had a poor harvest this year and difficult, dry weather. Middle Eastern buyers such as Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Israel are key markets for Russian grain.
Russia is also looking to diversify shipments to Asia, Africa and Latin America. The sources said exports to other buyers continued without interruption.
The recent attacks had pushed up freight costs and insurance premiums. These events also created payment difficulties involving banks in the gulf.
Analysts at grain rail carrier Rusagrotrans said Iran imported almost six million tonnes of grain from Russia from July to February. This compared with three million tonnes in the same period a year earlier.
Analysts estimate Russian exporters have shipped 1.9 million tonnes of wheat to Iran. This is out of a planned two to 2.2 million tonnes.
Most grain trade with Iran moves through the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Some shipments go by rail through Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.
LSEG data showed no vessel carrying Russian grain was currently in or near Iranian ports on the Caspian Sea. Russia's trade with Iran grew by 13 per cent in January–November 2025, according to the latest data from the bilateral government commission.
The Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union free trade deal with Iran took effect in May 2025. Russia has strengthened ties with Iran, which have become especially important amid Moscow's confrontation with the West over its military action in Ukraine.
A grain exporters' lobby in Kazakhstan, which shipped 1.2 million tonnes of barley to Iran last season, said earlier that Iranian importers were not signing new contracts. They indicated that sales could stall.
LSEG data showed the grain carrier Bellatrix arrived from Kazakhstan at Iran's Amirabad port on the Caspian Sea. The vessel dropped anchor without entering.
(Writing by Gleb Bryanski. Editing by Mark Potter.)
