‘Starvation as a weapon!’ Russia blasted by German minister over blockade of Ukraine

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The Kremlin was accused of “deliberately” using “starvation as a weapon” on Friday. Food and Agriculture Minister Cem Ozdemir also took aim at Russian President Vladimir Putin over his conduct in the war.

Speaking to CNN’s affiliate N-TV during a visit to Kyiv, Mr Ozdemir said: “[It is] a particularly disgusting kind of warfare that Russia is engaged in.”

He added: “Alternative routes cost an insane amount of money.”

Mr Ozdemir, who sat in the European Parliament from 2004 to 2009 after a short stint in the Bundestag, went on to discuss alternative ways to export grain from Ukraine.

During his visit to the Ukrainian capital, Mr Ozdemir met with his counterpart Mykola Solskyi.

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After turning his attention to Putin, Mr Ozdemir also said: “It would be kamikaze for Ukraine to rely on Putin’s word without credible, effective military guarantees that the security of Ukrainian ports and ships is assured.

“I would not trust Putin’s word in any way; he has proven to be a notorious liar.”

Mr Ozdemir, who was formerly the leader of the German Green, was appointed to the German cabinet after Olaf Scholz, 63, won the federal election in 2021.

Scholz’s government, which is made up of the centre-left SDP, Greens and liberal-leaning FDP, is the first not to be made up of the centre-right since 2011.

The European Union has attempted to come up with alternative ways for Ukraine to export agricultural goods to the rest of the continent.

A commission was established last month in a bid to create so-called solidarity lanes.

Commissioner for Transport Adina Vălean said: “20million tonnes of grains have to leave Ukraine in less than three months using the EU infrastructure.

“This is a gigantesque challenge, so it is essential to coordinate and optimise the logistic chains, put in place new routes, and avoid, as much as possible, the bottlenecks.

“Our communication addresses the emergency solutions but also medium and long time measures to better connect and integrate Ukraine’s infrastructure with the EU one.

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“For both short-term and long-term solutions, we will work with the Ukrainian authorities and in close collaboration, especially with the neighbouring Member States, who spared no effort in helping during this crisis.”

The report also found Black Sea ports accounted for 90 percent of Ukrainian exports of grain and oilseeds before Putin launched his invasion of the ex-Soviet state.

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