Russia says it will help Ukrainians get rid of Zelensky rule

In a meeting with representatives of Arab League countries last Sunday (24), Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia will help the Ukrainian people get rid of the government of President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Lavrov stated that Ukraine wants Russia to remain an eternal enemy and that Ukrainians deserve a much better life. He also called the Ukrainian president’s government an “unpopular and unhistorical regime”.

Ships arriving in Ukraine will be inspected for weapons, says Lavrov

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrovsaid on Sunday that any ships arriving at Ukrainian ports to pick up additional grain will be “inspected to ensure they do not bring weapons”.

In a speech to the Arab League in Cairo, Lavrov said any ship carrying weapons would be “detrimental to the continuation of the conflict”.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24 halted shipments and accelerated a rise in global commodity prices.

Since the start of the war, a blockade of Ukrainian ports by the Russian Black Sea fleet has trapped tens of millions of tons of grain, worsening global supply chain bottlenecks.

Egypt is one of the world’s biggest wheat importers and last year bought around 80% of these imports from Russia and Ukraine.

In its response to the war, Egypt was torn between long-standing ties to Russia and its close relationship with the Western powers that sanctioned and sought to isolate Moscow.

Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the United Nations signed an agreement on Friday to restart exports of Ukrainian wheat by sea, but a Russian attack in Odessa on Saturday (23) has put the deal’s implementation in doubt.

Lavrov previously met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and offered assurances about Russian grain supplies to Egypt.

Western embassies lobbied Egypt and the Arab League ahead of Lavrovwhich included talks with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and representatives of the Arab League.