Putin says – ‘We are planning a good harvest,’ as he sees a revival of Marie Antoinette in the West. |

Putin says – ‘We are planning a good harvest,’ as he sees a revival of Marie Antoinette in the West.

Sat 4:36 am +00:00, 25 Jun 2022

posted by Tapestry

Relations with the Russian Federation were discussed on Friday at several other venues – in particular, at the international conference on food security in Berlin, which brought together ministers of foreign affairs, as well as agriculture and development from about 40 countries. And here Germany did not at all look like a “lawyer” of Russia. Thus, Foreign Minister Annalena Burbock told the audience: the Russian Federation uses hunger “as a means of war” and by this “takes the whole world hostage.” The minister meant the impossibility of exporting Ukrainian grain by sea, which caused an increase in wheat prices around the world. In Western countries, Moscow is unambiguously blamed for this.

“There is no reason other than political reasons for Russia blockading Ukraine and in many cases refusing to supply its own grain,” US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said at a press conference with Ms Burbock. Russian blocking of Ukrainian food exports through the Black Sea”.

The same topic was raised by the foreign ministers of the G7 countries, who also gathered in Berlin. The German Foreign Ministry said in a statement following the meeting: “The central theme was Russia’s guilt for the aggravation of the global food crisis as a result of the war. The G7 ministers made it clear that the war threatens food security, including through the blockade of the Black Sea, the bombing of granaries and ports, and the destruction of Ukraine’s agricultural infrastructure.” At the same time, the ministers reportedly “rejected Russia’s false narrative and disinformation regarding sanctions”: “All G7 sanctions provide for exceptions so that Russian food and agricultural products can enter the world market.”

Speaking after the conclusion of the G7 meeting, Anthony Blinken clarified the policy of the Western countries, saying: “We are increasing the costs for Russia to end the war in Ukraine more quickly through unprecedented sanctions and export restrictions.”

He also assured journalists that anti-Russian sanctions would “bite harder and harder” and Russians “will feel it in everyday life.” The discussion of the topic will continue very soon at the highest level: on Sunday, the G7 summit will also open in Germany.

In turn, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday assured that

“the hysteria around the export of grain from Ukraine through the Black Sea ports is artificially inflated.”

“Russia has an understanding on Ukrainian grain with the UN, but it lacks Ukraine’s readiness,” he added, speaking at the BRICS Plus online summit.

In general, according to the Russian leader, the West is cynical about global food problems: “In my opinion, the French Queen Marie Antoinette is credited with the fact that, looking out of the window of her palace at a crowd of hungry striking citizens, she once said indifferently: ” If they don’t have bread, let them eat cake.” It is with such cynicism now that some Western countries, destabilizing the global production of agricultural products, are approaching issues of this kind, imposing restrictions, for example, on the supply of Russian and Belarusian fertilizers, making it difficult to export Russian grain to world markets.