The US alerted fifteen countries in May about the possibility that Russia was trying to sell grain stolen in Ukraine

Ukrainian flag on a ship in the Black Sea – YULII ZOZULIA / ZUMA PRESS / CONTACTOPHOTO

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Zelensky estimates that 75 million tons of grain could stay in the country

MADRID, 6 (EUROPE PRESS)

The US government alerted 14 countries, most of them in Africa, in May that Russia might be trying to sell grain stolen in Ukraine.

The State Department of the North American country has indicated that there are indications that at least three ships could transport grain stolen from Ukraine, according to information from the newspaper ‘The New York Times’.

The Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, has asserted that some 75 million tons of grain could remain in the country in the fall and has insisted on the need for anti-ship missiles to guarantee the safety of cargo ships with exports.

Zelensky has indicated that he has been holding talks with the UK and Turkey on the idea of ​​a third country guaranteeing the passage of grain exports from Ukraine through the Black Sea.

Washington’s alert has increased the dilemma for many African countries, which are facing food and supply problems in the midst of the war in Ukraine. UN data shows that Ukraine and Russia typically supply about 40 percent of Africa’s imported grain.

However, the price of grain has increased by 23 percent over the last year. In the Horn of Africa, drought has left some 17 million people on the brink of starvation, especially in countries like Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food has indicated that there are indications that “invading forces” are carrying out grain exports from temporarily occupied territories in Kherson, Zaporizhia, Lugansk, Donetsk and Kharkov, among other regions. The stolen grain is being shipped to Russia or the Crimean peninsula, according to Ukrainian authorities.