All member states of the European Union stand in solidarity with Ukraine and oppose Russia's illegal and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, as well as the harmful food abuse that endangers the markets of developing countries, Spain's Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Minister Luis Planas, whose country now leads the European Commission's (EC) Agriculture and Fisheries Council, said in a statement.

He said on Tuesday at a press conference after a meeting of EU agricultural ministers in Brussels that they are ready to do everything possible to help the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian authorities, especially in light of the recent provocation by Putin and the Russian Federation, which use food as a weapon of war.

According to him, Russia's refusal to extend the grain corridor agreement will undoubtedly be a blow to markets, especially emerging ones that depend on Ukrainian exports (of agricultural products), in particular, to Africa, Asia and Latin America.

According to the minister, we saw one example of this harmful misuse of food in this war last week, when an elevator with 60,000 tonnes of grain was destroyed during Russian attacks in Odesa region in Chornomorsk. This means that we absolutely need to improve and strengthen the solidarity lanes, of course, without disturbing the markets of the front-line countries bordering Ukraine, as well as Moldova, which also has a very sensitive position here, Planas stressed.

The Spanish minister said that EU agrarian ministers agreed to improve the transparency of the exchange of information, which was initiated within the work of the commission for cooperation with Ukraine, and to assess EU stocks of cereals and oilseeds to make decisions based on facts.

According to him, the coordination platform with the participation of Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania, as well as Ukraine and Moldova will accumulate the information necessary for the European Commission's decision, which will help export Ukrainian grain.

Planas also said that Poland, representing the position of the five front-line countries with Ukraine, informed the EU agrarian ministers about the worthy work of the solidarity lanes, thanks to which the export of agricultural products from Ukraine was doubled.

Poland also asked to extend preventive restrictive measures on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products to Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Romania after September 15 until the end of 2023.

At the request of Romania, EU agrarian ministers heard a report by European Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski on the situation in the front-line countries.

The solution to the issue on the export of agricultural products from Ukraine will be continued at a meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council of the European Commission, which will be held in August.