Ukraine Russia Conflict: Putin ‘holding the world to ransom’ over food, says Liz Truss

The UK’s foreign minister, Liz Truss, accused Vladimir Putin of “weaponising” hunger through Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian grain exports. Speaking during a visit to Bosnia Herzegovina, Truss said, "It is completely appalling that Putin is trying to hold the world to ransom. He is essentially weaponising hunger and lack of food amongst the poorest people around the world. We simply cannot allow this to happen. Putin needs to remove the blockade on Ukrainian grain."

"What we cannot have is any lifting of sanctions, any appeasement, which will simply make Putin stronger in the longer term" she added. 

Meanwhile, Russia on 24th February launched its invasion of Ukraine. And, according to the latest updates, Ukraine’s president and foreign minister have pleaded with the west to send more weapons to their military in the face of Russia’s intensifying assault on the eastern Donbas region. Russian forces have launched fresh assaults on towns in eastern Ukraine, with the city of Sievierodonetsk increasingly in danger of being totally encircled. Also, Ukraine’s foreign ministry said Moscow’s plan to simplify the process of handing Russian citizenship to residents of Ukraine’s Russian-occupied regions violates international law.