“Kyiv rejects Moscow’s proposals to open humanitarian sea corridors, and we call on the international community to influence them to free the movement of ships”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday that negotiations between Russia and Ukraine had stopped, and pointed out during a conference with his Kazakh counterpart Mukhtar Teleoperdi that “the West’s plans to turn Ukraine into a platform for deterring Russia have failed.”
On the other hand, Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Dmitry Chumakov, announced that Kyiv rejects Moscow’s proposals to open sea humanitarian corridors, calling on the international community to influence them to free the movement of merchant ships.
Speaking at the Security Council, Chumakov said: “The (Arria formula) session focused on conflict and hunger, and the European Union Commissioner for Security and External Affairs Josep Borrell said that the Russian side is preventing the flow of Ukrainian wheat exports to Africa.”
He added, “The danger of bombing and naval mines from Ukraine was recognized by the Ukrainian delegation to the International Maritime Organization.”
He continued, “The Ukrainian side has never agreed to our proposals for humanitarian sea corridors.. Also, banning Russian ships in European ports does not help in solving today’s problems.. Russia is taking all measures to ensure commercial navigation in the Black Sea, Azov and the Mediterranean.”