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G20 talks: Antony Blinken tells Russia 'let the grain out' of Ukraine
A Western official said that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken demanded Russia allow grain shipments out of war-battered Ukraine during closed-door G20 talks in Indonesia on Friday (July 8).
Blinken said, according to a Western official present: "To our Russian colleagues: Ukraine is not your country. Its grain is not your grain. Why are you blocking the ports? You should let the grain out.’
Blinken has refused to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov but addressed Russia during the talks and laid out US financial assistance to ease global food shortages triggered by the war in Ukraine, a major source of global grain and corn exports.
Blinken said, according to the official: "Russia is the source of the problem, the United States is focused on solutions.”
Ukraine has seen its production blocked by Moscow's military offensive, sparking a surge in prices that has particularly affected poor countries.
Moscow says it would allow Ukrainian ships loaded with food products to leave if the Ukrainian military demined its ports, an option rejected by Kyiv, which fears for the safety of its Black Sea coast.
UK looks at alternative routes such as Danube to get grain out of Ukraine
Ukraine reached 54.9 million tonnes of wheat, corn and barley exports in 2019-2020, but dipped to 44.9 million tonnes in 2020-21, mostly on lower wheat production, according to the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Feb. 1 Foreign Agricultural Services (FAS) quarterly report.
Ukraine accounted for 10% of global wheat exports in 2021, according to the United Nations, while Russia produced about 17% of all wheat globally. It is known as one of the world's breadbaskets for its agricultural production.
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