It looks like blackmail.
This Thursday, Vladimir Putin said during a call with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi that Russia was "ready to make a significant contribution to overcoming the food crisis through the export of cereals and fertilizers , subject to the West lifting politically motivated restrictions,” according to a Kremlin statement.
In Washington, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby accused Russia of "using food as a weapon".
“And we are obviously in discussion with (…) our international partners and allies on how best to respond to all this,” he said.
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Vladimir Putin assured that Western accusations that Moscow, since its offensive in Ukraine, has blocked Ukrainian grain exports were “unfounded”.
"The difficulties that have arisen are linked, among other things, to disruptions in the functioning of production and logistics chains, as well as to the financial policy of Western countries during the coronavirus pandemic," he said.
“The situation has worsened due to the anti-Russian restrictions imposed by the United States and the European Union,” even insisted the Russian president, referring to the unprecedented salvoes of sanctions that hit Russia.
No "glimmer of hope for peace"
Ukraine, a major exporter of cereals, especially corn and wheat, is seeing its production blocked due to the fighting.
For its part, Russia, another cereal power, cannot sell its production and its fertilizers because of Western sanctions affecting the financial and logistics sectors.
However, the two countries produce a third of the world's wheat.
Vladimir Putin also informed Mario Draghi "of the ongoing work to establish a peaceful life in the liberated cities of Donbass" and claimed that the peace process was "frozen by Kyiv".
Mario Draghi for his part declared, during a press conference, that “the purpose of this telephone call was to ask if something could be done to unblock the wheat which is today in the deposits in Ukraine”.
He suggested a "collaboration between Russia and Ukraine on the unblocking of the Black Sea ports" where this wheat is, which is in danger of rotting, "on the one hand to clear these ports and on the other hand to guarantee that it there are no skirmishes during demining".
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Mario Draghi indicated that there was, on the Russian side, “a readiness to continue in this direction”, and that he would call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “to see if there is a similar will”.
"When I am asked if I have seen any glimmers of hope for peace, the answer is no", however concluded the Italian Prime Minister.
This Thursday, Emmanuel Macron, for his part, spoke with the Turkish president in particular on “the urgency of making possible the exports of Ukrainian cereals”.