MOSCOW, July 22. /TASS/. The signing of the agreement on grain export from Ukraine demonstrate Russia’s responsible approach to the problems of food security, a senior Russian lawmaker said on Friday.
"The signing of the agreement on grain export demonstrates in practical terms Russia’s responsible approach to the issues of food security. Let us hope that the results of the Istanbul talks will help ease the situation on the global markets and remove the risks of a food crisis. It is also important to ensure that all the signatories to the agreement implement their commitments," Leonid Slutsky, chairman of the international committee of the Russian State Duma (lower parliament house) and the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR), told journalists.
A package of documents geared to resolve the problem of food and fertilizer supplies on global markets was signed on July 22 in Istanbul. Under the Russia-UN memorandum, the United Nations undertakes to work toward lifting anti-Russian restrictions hampering exports of agricultural products and fertilizers. Another document envisages a mechanism of exporting grain from Ukraine-controlled Black Sea ports. An agreement between Russia, Turkey and the United Nations provides for the establishment of a four-side coordination center to search ships carrying grain to prevent weapons smuggling and avoid provocations.