Putin: Russia ready to help overcome food crisis if west lifts sanctions

Russia was slapped with unprecedented sanctions after Putin ordered troops into neighboring Ukraine on February 24.

The sanctions and military action have disrupted supplies of fertilizer, wheat and other commodities from both Russia and Ukraine.

The two countries produce 30% of the global wheat supply. Russia and neighboring Belarus—which is also under sanctions—are crucial global suppliers of fertilizer products, while Ukraine also exports large amounts of sunflower oil, corn, and barley. Ukraine is the breadbasket for much of the Middle East and North Africa.

Many believe that Russia's ongoing blockade of Ukrainian ports—which has eliminated nearly 25 million tons of grain from the global supply chain—is primarily responsible for the shortage. However, in Russia, officials agree there is a food crisis, but not for the same reasons.

"We are not the source of the problem," said Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov in a call with journalists on Monday, adding the West's reaction to the invasion of Ukraine and sanctions are primarily to blame.

The representative of the Russian Federation said on the UN Security Council meeting that various factors — including speculation on Western food futures markets and unilateral illegal economic sanctions — are not the fault of the Russian Federation.

Thursday, Putin and Italy's Prime Minister Mario Draghi discussed ways to help ease the international food crisis, with the Kremlin saying this could be done only if the West lifts sanctions.

"Vladimir Putin emphasized that the Russian Federation is ready to make a significant contribution to overcoming the food crisis through the export of grain and fertilizers, provided that politically motivated restrictions from the West are lifted," Moscow said in a statement.

Putin also described as "unfounded" accusations that Russia was to blame for the problems with food supplies on the global market.

He argues if the sanctions are lifted, the food supply will start to flow again.

The world's food supply problem is worsening, and Russia's inflation problem is also getting out of hand.

Economists widely agree that Putin's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine had a huge impact on worldwide inflation remaining high well into 2022, with the Biden administration going so far as to call it "Putin's price hike."

Putin prefers to exclude that from his economic analysis.

"In countries that aren't conducting any operations—say, overseas in North America, in Europe—inflation is comparable and, if you look at the structure of their economies, even more than ours," Putin said.