Global Food Crisis: Putin gives West, UN condition for lifting siege on Ukraine food export

Russia is ready to provide a humanitarian corridor for vessels carrying food to leave Ukraine in return for the lifting of some sanctions, the country’s Interfax news agency has cited deputy foreign minister Andrey Rudenko as saying.

Ukraine’s Black Sea ports have been blocked since Moscow launched its offensive and more than 20 million tonnes of grain are stuck in silos in the country.

Russia and Ukraine account for nearly a third of global wheat supplies and the lack of significant grain exports from Ukraine’s ports is contributing to a growing global food crisis. Ukraine is also a major exporter of corn and sunflower oil.

Western powers have been discussing the idea of setting up “safe corridors” for grain exports from Ukraine’s ports, adding that any such corridor would need Russian consent.

Al Jazeera