MOSCOW, June 7. /TASS/. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday that there was still no clear-cut timeframe for resumption of grain exports from the port of Odessa as Ukraine should first clear of mines all approaches to sea ports.
"We have no timeframe as of yet," Peskov told a news briefing. "We have a statement from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said that Ukraine must clear of mines approaches to sea ports."
"It will allow vessels - following their inspection by our military on the issue of possible armaments smuggling - to enter the port, upload the cargo of grain and then, even with our help, proceed to the international waters," he said.
Peskov added that there were currently no clear-cut agreements on this issue.
The situation in Ukraine and the barrage of sanctions that the United States and the European Union imposed on Russia have disrupted grain supplies, raising the risk of a food crisis in a number of countries. Wheat and corn prices have soared since the beginning of the year.
A UN Security Council meeting on May 21 revealed that global wheat stocks would last for only ten weeks. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said earlier that the global food crisis, triggered by the coronavirus pandemic and miscalculations by Western countries, had erupted long before the launch of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine.
According to Russia’s chief diplomat, current situation exacerbated the problem and Western sanctions became one of the main reasons for the food supply disruptions.