President Zelensky Warns Of Risks If Russia Disrupts Ukrainian Grain Exports

President Zelensky. (President.gov.ua)

JAKARTA - Corridors for exporting grain from Ukrainian ports require a long-term way to reliably defend them, while the world must respond decisively to any attempts by Russia to interfere with it, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday.

President Zelensky said ships were moving out of Ukrainian ports with cargo, thanks to efforts by Turkey and the United Nations to keep the corridor open and functioning.

"But reliable and long-term defense is needed for the grain corridor," President Zelensky said in a video of his evening address.

"Russia clearly needs to be made aware that they will receive a harsh response from the world against any move to disrupt our food exports. What is at issue here is clearly the lives of tens of millions of people," he said.

As previously reported, President Vladimir Putin stressed that the freeze on participation in the Black Sea grain export program was a response to drone attacks on Moscow's fleet in Crimea that he blamed on Kyiv.

Moscow said it was pulling out of a deal to allow shipments of Ukrainian grain for "an indefinite period of time.

Russia and Ukraine are among the world's biggest food exporters, with Russia's blockade of Ukrainian grain shipments causing a global food crisis earlier this year.