INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russia and Turkey made little headway on Wednesday in talks aimed at securing safe passage for Ukrainian grain exports, as a Russian sea
blockade triggered new warnings of deadly famine.Prior to the war, Ukraine was a major exporter of wheat, corn and sunflower oil, but
shipments have been blocked since Russia invaded its neighbor in late February, causing food prices to soar worldwide.Countries in the
Middle East and Africa depend on Ukraine's exports, raising fears of hunger in those countries.At the request of the United Nations, Turkey
near the Turkish coast."We are ready to ensure the safety of ships that leave Ukrainian ports," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said
at a news conference with Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu after talks in Ankara.Ukraine, which was not part of the talks in Turkey, has
Russia's chief diplomat blamed Ukraine for the situation."Grain can be freely transported to destinations, there are no obstacles from
(Volodymyr) Zelensky give an order, if he is still in charge of something there, to allow foreign and Ukrainian ships to enter the Black
Sea."Lavrov also said Russia was ready to provide guarantees it would not launch any attacks if Ukraine de-mined ports."We are ready to do
this in cooperation with our Turkish colleagues."'Condemning millions to death'Cavusoglu said the UN plan was "reasonable" and
"implementable," and he offered to host a meeting in Istanbul to discuss the details of the scheme."We prepared a plan for food corridors,"
court of Ukraine," added the source, who declined to be named.Zelensky said this week that the amount of grain blocked by the war could
triple within several months.At separate talks on the global food crisis, Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio warned that millions of
people could die of hunger unless Russia lifted its blockade."The next few weeks will be crucial to resolving the situation," he said after
a virtual meeting involving Turkey and Lebanon among other Mediterranean countries, alongside G7 president Germany and the UN's Food and
Agriculture Organization."I want to say clearly, we expect clear and concrete signals from Russia, because blocking grain exports means
holding hostage and condemning to death millions of children, women and men."Russian exportsTurkey, which hosted talks between Russian and
Ukrainian foreign ministers in March aimed at ending the war, has positioned itself as a neutral mediator as it maintains a delicate
much as the Ukrainians, calling Moscow's demands for an end to sanctions to help grain onto the world market "legitimate.""If we need to
open up the international market to Ukrainian grain, we see the removal of obstacles standing in the way of Russia's exports as a legitimate
demand," he said.Soner Cagaptay, a specialist on Turkey for the Washington Institute think tank, said the UN-led plan that would allow
Russia to trade with the outside world "could work.""Because ultimately this is about food security
Yes, people don't want Russia to make money but at the same time nobody wants famine," he told AFP.Russia and Ukraine produce 30% of the
global wheat supply.Cagaptay said some progress could be made in the future, but it might require Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to
