Belarus leader seeks to trade sanctions relief for an outlet for Ukrainian grain.

Seeking to leverage a global food crisis to get relief from international sanctions, the president of Belarus, Aleksandr G. Lukashenko, said on Friday that Ukrainian grain could travel by rail through his country to ports on the Baltic Sea, but only if Belarus is allowed to use the same ports to export its own goods.

Mr. Lukashenko, a staunch ally of Moscow, made the offer in a telephone conversation with the secretary general of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, according to Belta, the Belarusian state news agency.

Russia has blockaded Ukraine’s ports on the Black Sea, which were previously the main export route for Ukrainian grain and oilseeds. The war has left around 25 million tons of grain stranded in silos and at risk of rotting away unless it is moved soon. Read more

@nytimes