Grain flows hinge on Ukraine, Russia says

Onus on Kyiv to demine key ports and avert food crisis, foreign chief declares

Russia on Wednesday put the ball in Ukraine's court for grain shipments from the country's ports to resume after its declaration that it had completed demining work. It's now up to the Ukrainians to remove the mines they had placed off major Black Sea ports and avert a global food crisis, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday.

No further action was required by Russia because it had already made the necessary commitments, Lavrov said in comments that came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned of a "very difficult" winter ahead for his compatriots.

Russia's top diplomat was speaking after talks with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, who described it as "legitimate" Russian demands for an end to sanctions to help bring grain onto the world market.

Lavrov said: "We state daily that we're ready to guarantee the safety of vessels leaving Ukrainian ports and heading for the (Bosporus) gulf. We're ready to do that in cooperation with our Turkish colleagues.

"To solve the problem, the only thing needed is for the Ukrainians to let vessels out of their ports, either by demining them or by marking out safe corridors. Nothing more is required."

Cavusoglu, in stressing the need for Ukrainian grain to reach the international market, told a joint news conference in Ankara: "We see the removal of obstacles standing in the way of Russia's exports as a legitimate demand."

Ukraine responded on Wednesday that it would not demine waters around the Black Sea port of Odessa to allow for grain to be exported, citing the threat of Russian attacks on the city.

"The moment we clear access to the port of Odessa, the Russian fleet will be there," Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesman for the regional administration, said in a video statement on social media.

'Difficult winter'

Amid the talk for a way out of a global food crisis, Zelensky described the upcoming winter as "the most difficult winter of all the years of independence".

In his nightly address on Tuesday, the Ukrainian leader said he had discussed with government officials and representatives of the largest state-owned energy companies the need to "set up a headquarters to prepare for the next heating season".

On the economic front, the World Bank approved $1.49 billion in additional financing for Ukraine on Tuesday to help pay wages for government and social workers, expanding the bank's total pledged support to over $4 billion.

Still, Zelensky said there are "issues of purchasing a sufficient amount of gas for the heating season, coal accumulation, and electricity production".

In the diplomatic sphere, former German chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday defended her yearslong policy of detente toward Moscow, saying she had "nothing to apologize for" even as the Ukraine conflict casts a pall on her legacy.

In her first major interview since stepping down six months ago, Merkel insisted she had not been naive in her dealings with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Diplomacy isn't wrong just because it hasn't worked," the 67-year-old said on stage in a Berlin theater, in an interview broadcast on the Phoenix news channel.

She recalled the German-French efforts to keep the Minsk peace process for Ukraine alive.

"I don't see that I have to say 'that was wrong' and that's why I have nothing to apologize for." The veteran leader, who frequently met with Putin during her 16 years in power, said the start of Russia's special military operation on Feb 24 had marked a "turning point".

On the battlefield, Moscow claimed advances amid fierce fighting. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu had claimed to have taken control of 97 percent of Ukraine's eastern region of Lugansk, bringing the Kremlin closer to its goal of fully controlling the eastern industrial heartland known for its coal mines and factories.

After abandoning its attempt to storm Kyiv two months ago, Russia declared that taking the entire Donbas is its main objective.

Agencies contributed to this story.

REN QI in Moscow

renqi@chinadaily.com.cn