Ukrainian Minister Kuleba: “Find two alternative land routes to export war-blocked wheat”

“By blocking our ports, Russia is putting millions of people at risk of starvation. Together with partners, Ukraine has established two alternative land routes to deliver food exports and save Africa and other regions from famine. Russia must end the blockade to allow full and free export ”. This was stated in a tweet by the Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Russia puts millions of people at risk of hunger by blocking our ports. Together with partners, Ukraine has established two alternative land routes to deliver food exports and save Africa and other regions from hunger. Russia must end its blockade to allow full and free export.

— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) May 21, 2022

Ukraine and Russia are both major producers and exporters of grain. About 20% of global cereal exports are attributable to Moscow and Kiev. From the ports of the Black Sea, currently paralyzed due to the war, loads left to feed 400 million people in the world. Among the countries most dependent on wheat in Russia and Ukraine are Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, Tunisia and Bangladesh. Currently in the Ukrainian silos there would be about 20 million tons of wheat which, however, cannot be moved. In the meantime, the price of cereals is running (+ 75% in the last year) and the risk of famine is increasing.

“Russia has blocked over 20 million tons of crops in Ukrainian ports”, the president of Ukraine reiterated a little while ago. Volodymyr Zelensky during a joint briefing with the Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa today in Kiev. “Russia has blocked almost all ports. All, so to speak, maritime opportunities to export food – our wheat, barley, sunflower and others… 22 million tons are blocked by the Russian Federation today, ”the Ukrainian president said.

Last Thursday the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia of using food as a weapon by blocking supplies not only for Ukrainians but also for millions of people around the world. A senior official in Moscow denied the allegations, saying the Russians “are not idiots” and would not export food despite being subject to severe sanctions. The Russian Ambassador to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, has rejected as “absolutely false” the excise duties on Russia’s responsibility for the food crisis, arguing that Ukraine has instead blocking foreign ships in its ports and undermining the waters. The Secretary General of the United Nations Anthony Guterres he is looking for a mediation to get the loads started again.

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