Russia must take first step to unblock Ukrainian exports – Ukraine’s MFA

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said this on Facebook, commenting on the statement by Russian Minister Sergei Lavrov that the Russians will allow the safe passage of ships with grain if Ukraine demines its territorial waters, Ukrinform reports.

Nikolenko noted that Ukraine is working with partners to consider establishing an international mission, particularly under the auspices of the United Nations, which will take over the functioning of maritime routes for the export of Ukrainian agricultural products.

"We welcome the preliminary readiness of a number of countries to join the process of restoring security in the Black Sea. As a first step, Russia must withdraw its forces in the maritime waters around Ukraine and provide security guarantees against attacks on ports and commercial convoys,” he said.

He noted that by attacking Ukraine, Russia laid siege to Ukrainian seaports. "The Russian army has mined part of the sea, constantly trying to break through the defense of Odesa and other coastal cities from the Black Sea," he said.

Nikolenko stated that as a result of the Russian blockade, Ukraine has now lost the opportunity to export agricultural products by sea. Alternative land routes will not completely solve the problem due to their low capacity. In addition, Russia is stealing Ukrainian grain from temporarily occupied territories in order to sell it illegally to third countries.

"Russia's actions could lead to a global food crisis and, in some regions, even a famine. Russia must immediately unblock Ukrainian seaports, stop shelling Odesa and other coastal cities, withdraw its navy to a distance that will prevent attacks on merchant ships and not create obstacles to international navigation,” he said.

He said that Ukraine remains committed to finding ways to unblock routes in the Black and Azov Seas to prevent a global food crisis.

"We call on the countries whose food security may suffer the most from Russia's aggression against Ukraine to use their contacts with Moscow to force it to lift the blockade of Ukrainian seaports and end the war," Nikolenko said.