Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky on Wednesday welcomed the resumption of the Ukrainian grain export agreement after mediation by the UN and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, saying that «Russian blackmail» led to nothing.
«Today we have a significant diplomatic result for our country and the whole world: the grain export initiative will continue to work. Russian blackmail did not lead to anything,» the Ukrainian leader said in his daily message to the population of the country.
Zelensky noted that «once again» the international community has realized that «there is only one threat» to world food security in the region, and that is «Russia and no one else».
In this regard, he stressed that every time «Russian blackmail» intensifies, food prices go up, and every time the world does not give in to blackmail, agricultural products become cheaper.
«If there were no Russian attack on Ukraine, there wouldn’t even be a phantom threat of a global food crisis. Because every Russian missile that hits our ports, grain elevators and power plants that drive our agricultural production ultimately affects the standard of living of tens of millions of people in many countries» Zelenski has stated, citing countries such as Egypt, Algeria, Sudan, India, China or Vietnam.
«This year they overpaid tens of billions of euros for food products, and all this just because of Russia, just because of the crazy Russian aggression that destabilizes international trade,» he added.