Moscow, Jun. 17, (dpa/GNA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia was not at fault for blocking Ukrainian grain exports and that Russia is not to blame for rising food prices.
Speaking at the International Economic Forum in St Petersburg, he said that “it was not us who mined the ports.” He said that if Kiev cleans up the sea mines, Russia would guarantee the safety of the exports.
However, Putin also suggested that Ukrainian grain deliveries were insignificant at a global level. He said that Ukraine exports around 5 to 6 million tonnes of wheat and a similar amount of corn, adding that this amount is not important for the global economy.
What is influencing rising food prices, Putin claimed, were Western sanctions on Russia. He warned that the embargo on fertilizers in particular was endangering future harvests.
Putin also accused the US and Europe of increasing their own food imports so making conditions more competitive on world markets. He claimed this process started long before the Ukraine war, referring to this as the “military special operation in the Donbass.”
GNA