Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that in addition to Russia and Turkey, the passage of ships with Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea will be ensured by a third party which will be decided later, Interfax reports.

"We managed to reach an agreement in Istanbul. Ukraine is engaged in demining [in the Black Sea], Russia, Turkey, and another party—the identity of which I has yet to be clarified—will accompany the [aforesaid] ships to the Bosphorus," Lavrov said.

He noted that the Russia-UN memorandum, which was signed in Istanbul at the same time as the aforementioned agreement, has obligated the UN Secretary General to start the process, to convince the Western countries, and force them to make a decision to remove all restrictions on the export of Russian grain.

Lavrov reflected also on to the decision not to impose sanctions on food, which does not correspond to reality, as restrictions were introduced on the possibility of Russian ships full of food in foreign ports, access to Russian ports for grain, as well as payment and insurance mechanisms, which has exacerbated the global food crisis.

Lavrov added that the abovementioned crisis is not Russia's fault, but is rather linked to the supply chains’ disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic.