Blinken says reports of Russia stealing Ukraine grain for profit ‘credible’
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia of stealing Ukraine’s grain and selling it for profit
- EU blames Russia for food crisis, Russian UN envoy walks out of UN Security Council meeting
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken gave support to reports that Russia has stolen grain from Ukraine for resale, even as Moscow blocks the country from exporting its own corn.
“There are credible reports … that Russia is pilfering Ukraine’s grain exports to sell for its own profit,” Blinken said at a State Department conference on food security issues arising from the invasion of Ukraine.
“Now, Russia is hoarding its food exports as well,” Blinken added, outlining the reasons for the sharp surge in global prices for wheat and other grains, and looming shortages.
The war “is having a devastating impact on global food security because Ukraine is one of the breadbaskets of the world,” Blinken said on Monday.
Ukraine has accused Russia of shipping Ukrainian grain to countries including Türkiye* and Syria. The New York Times reported Monday that a number of freight vessels have departed Russia-controlled ports with what US officials have described as “stolen Ukrainian grain”.
It said that the United States has alerted 14 countries, mostly in Africa, about the shipments, as many of them are dependent on grain imports and already face severely constrained supplies.
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Blinken said the Russian navy has blocked grain carriers from leaving the Black Sea port of Odesa, in an effort to “blackmail” the world into supporting Moscow’s war.
“Right now a Russian naval blockade in the Black Sea is preventing Ukraine’s crops from being shipped to their normal destinations,” he said.
“There is somewhere around 20 million tonnes of wheat that is trapped in silos near Odesa, and in ships literally filled with grain that are stuck in the Odesa port because of this Russian blockade.”
Blinken said it was a deliberate strategy by Russian President Vladimir Putin to force the rest of the world “to give in to him,” and eliminate sanctions on Russia.
“In other words, quite simply put, it’s blackmail,” Blinken said.
The US government is not the only entity to blame Russia for fuelling a global food crisis.
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During a UN Security Council meeting earlier Monday, European Council President Charles Michel accused Russian forces of war crimes and crimes against humanity, as well as contributing to a food crisis.
“Mr ambassador of the Russian Federation, let’s be honest, the Kremlin is using food supplies as a stealth missile against developing countries,” Michel said in the Security Council. “Russia is solely responsible for this food crisis.”
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Russia’s UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, who attended the council meeting, “categorically refuted” the claims made by Michel and called the accusations a “lie” before storming out of the Security Council chamber.
As the Russian envoy left the room, Michel said: “You may leave the room, maybe it’s easier not to listen to the truth”.
In a statement following the incident, Nebenzia told Reuters that he “couldn’t stay” because of “the lies that Charles Michel came here to distribute”.
Agence France-Presse, Associated Press and Business Insider
