British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss accused Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday of demanding ransom from the world for food, in response to a question about whether she supported lifting sanctions in exchange for grain exports from Ukraine.
"It is absolutely appalling that Putin is trying to impose a ransom on the world, and he is basically using the hunger and lack of food of the poorest people around the world as a weapon," Truss said during a visit to Bosnia.
"We simply cannot allow this to happen," she added. "Putin must lift the blockade of Ukrainian grain."
And the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying that Moscow is ready to open a humanitarian corridor for ships carrying foodstuffs to leave Ukraine, in exchange for the lifting of some sanctions.
Western countries are coordinating among themselves in imposing sanctions on Russia, from companies and media to businessmen and politicians, to punish Moscow for the war in Ukraine.
"We can't lift the sanctions and any kind of appeasement will simply make Putin stronger in the long run," Truss said.
Ukraine's Black Sea ports have been closed since Russia sent thousands of soldiers to Ukraine on February 24, and more than 20 million tons of grain are stuck in silos in the country.
Russia and Ukraine account for nearly a third of the world's wheat supply, and a shortage of grain exports from Ukraine's ports is contributing to a growing global food crisis.
Ukraine is also a major exporter of corn and sunflower oil.
Western powers are discussing the idea of creating "safe corridors" for grain exports from Ukraine's ports, adding that any such corridor would need Russian approval.
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- Agencies