Russia: There is a chasm between Western declarations and actual actions regarding the export of Russian products.

Sputnik - The grain deal needs adjustments; Ukraine's main grain supplies are not going to the poorest countries, declared Sergei Vershinin, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister.

"This is a very important issue. It occupied a considerable amount of time during our discussions [in Istanbul]. We talked about the overall implementation of the Istanbul agreements signed on July 22nd of this year." According to Vershinin, "the Russian delegation examined how the inspection of one of the dry cargo ships transporting grain from Odessa takes place."

"It was a large dry cargo vessel flying the Liberian flag, with a capacity of 65.000 tons of grain. And it was headed for Spain. Incidentally, this is an opportunity to remember that, until now, the main grain supplies from Ukraine have not gone to the poorest countries. They go primarily to sufficiently developed, wealthy countries," said the diplomat, stressing that the grain agreement was signed to guarantee food security, particularly for the poorest countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

"Unfortunately, the numbers today do not confirm that the majority of grains are going to those countries. We believe adjustments are necessary," Vershinin stated.

The deputy minister stated that there are improvements in the supply of food products from Russia.

"Ultimately, after our efforts and the assistance of the World Food Organization, some progress has been made. As you know, the first cargo ship is going to Malawi, and others are expected to follow," he noted.

According to Vershinin, there is a huge gap between the West's words and actual actions regarding Russia's agricultural exports, a gap that partners must bridge.

"The most sensitive issue is that, despite statements made in Brussels and Washington that Russian agricultural exports will not be subject to the sanctions imposed on our country in a completely unfair and unilateral manner, there has been no progress on this issue for a long time. There is, and remains, a large gap between statements and actual actions. This gap needs to be bridged by our partners," the diplomat told reporters after talks with Turkey in Istanbul.

He also highlighted that, for now, Moscow is not obtaining concrete and substantial results regarding unimpeded access to Russian agricultural products and fertilizers.

"We believe that, as part of a single package, it is absolutely necessary to make progress in implementing the second part of the memorandum package between Russia and the UN Secretariat. It provides for unimpeded access to Russian agricultural products and fertilizers. We are not yet receiving concrete and substantive results," commented Vershinin.

On July 22, Russia, Turkey, and the UN signed an agreement in Istanbul to unblock Ukrainian grain exports amid hostilities, establishing a Joint Coordination Center to ensure the safety of ships transporting goods from Ukraine and to carry out necessary inspections.

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