23 May 2022, Monday, 22:08 1368

Lithuania Proposes To Create International Military Fleet To Release Seaports Of Ukraine

Редактор: Tetiana Herasimova

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis proposes to form a coalition of countries that could use their warships to protect cargo ships with grain from the blocked seaports of Ukraine.

Landsbergis proposed this during negotiations with British Foreign Minister Liz Truss, writes European Pravda with reference to the British media.

According to him, the season of harvesting a new crop is approaching. Due to the fighting, there is no way to store grain. It is also not possible to take it out on any other route except from the seaport of Odesa.

The head of the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry believes that the naval operation could protect cargo ships with grain while they are traveling from Odesa to the Black Sea, where the ships of the invaders are constantly located.

"It will be a non-military humanitarian mission and cannot be compared to a no-fly zone. This undertaking will use warships or aircraft, or both, to ensure that grain supplies can safely leave Odessa and reach the Bosphorus without Russian interference," Landsbergis said.

He stressed that this operation, if it is possible to form a coalition of willing countries, should not take place under the auspices of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

The British Foreign Minister said her country was ready to take part in such an operation. London is in discussions with its allies.

Truss noted that the implementation of this plan will probably require consent from the United States.

Recall that at the beginning of the month, the United Nations (UN) said that about 25 million tons of grain were stuck in the seaports of Ukraine due to Russia's invasion.

The organization is confident that this can significantly spur world food prices and cause hunger in third countries of the world.

We also reported that President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President of the European Council Charles Michel discussed the importance of taking measures to release the seaports of Ukraine.

And UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres proposed easing sanctions against Russia so that it would allow grain to be removed from Ukraine.