The Russian President (Kremlin) confirmed that “Russian forces will inspect ships crossing Ukrainian ports to load grain”, noting that “Russia will not use mine-cleared shipping lanes for an attack.”

EU Foreign Policy Commissioner Josep Borrell said June 5 that “the ongoing Russian blockade of Ukraine’s ports is hindering the export of tons of grain, including corn and wheat,” noting that “Russia is directly responsible for any grain shortage.” markets.”

For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin refuses to blame his country for the food crisis. In this context, he stated on June 3 that “the situation (on the food market) will worsen due to sanctions against our fertilizer production”, saying that “new sanctions against Russia will only aggravate the situation on world markets.” .”

He said that “according to our estimates, Ukraine can export 5 million tons of wheat and 7 million tons of corn”, stressing that “Russia does not interfere with the export of grain from Ukraine, and we are ready to guarantee exports from Ukrainian ports.” Sea of ​​Azov”, noting that “it is possible to export grain from Ukraine through Romania and Poland”, noting that “we guarantee the safety of grain export from ports, and there are no problems with sending it from Ukraine”, repeating that “Ukraine can export grain from ports under its control, such as Odessa.”