Zelensky warns Black Sea food corridor is blocked from both sides, calls it a global challenge
Speaking at the Yalta European Strategy conference on 11 September 2026, President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Black Sea food corridor is effectively blocked from both the Ukrainian and Russian sides, and that he has discussed the issue with the leaders of Egypt, India, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. He warned that African and Asian countries without access to both Ukrainian and Russian grain will face a significantly worse situation, while assuring Ukrainians they will not go hungry even under a full export blockade.
Key points
- President Zelensky said on 11 September at the YES conference that the Black Sea food corridor is effectively blocked from both the Ukrainian and Russian sides.
- Zelensky said he discussed unblocking the corridor with the leaders of Egypt, India, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, noting Russia is negotiating with the same countries.
- He warned that countries in Africa and Asia lacking access to both Ukrainian and Russian grain will face a significantly worse food situation.
- He assured Ukrainians they will not be left without food even under a full export blockade, but said Ukrainian agrarians and exporters will suffer first due to falling domestic prices and expensive logistics.
- He said food and energy security are two global challenges and that even without full peace, decisions could be made on an 'energy truce' or unblocking the food corridor.
- In July 2026 alone Ukraine recorded 35 Russian attacks on vessels in ports, 22 on vessels at sea, and 67 strikes on port infrastructure; Bloomberg estimates the strikes could cost Ukraine about 2% of GDP.
- A 9 September Russian drone attack on the cargo vessel TEDY killed two Azerbaijani citizens and wounded two others.
Why it matters
Zelensky framed the Black Sea blockade as a global food-security crisis comparable to an 'agro Hormuz,' tying Ukrainian and Russian grain flows to food security in Africa and Asia and engaging major grain-importing and mediating countries on possible solutions. He also signalled that partial steps — an 'energy truce' or unblocking the food corridor — remain possible even without a full peace settlement, while acknowledging that Ukrainian agrarians and exporters will be the first to bear the economic costs at home.
What happened
On 11 September 2026, addressing the Yalta European Strategy (YES) conference, President Volodymyr Zelensky declared that the Black Sea food corridor is effectively blocked from both the Ukrainian and Russian sides. He said he had discussed resolving the blockade with the leaders of Egypt, India, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and noted that Russia was holding parallel talks with the same countries. Zelensky framed agriculture and energy as the two defining global challenges and warned that African and Asian states losing access to both Ukrainian and Russian grain would face a particularly difficult situation. He reassured Ukrainians they would not go hungry even under a full export blockade, but warned that falling domestic grain prices and costly logistics would hit Ukrainian farmers and businesses first. He also raised the prospect of partial measures — an 'energy truce' or unblocking the food corridor — even without a full peace deal.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian sources centre Zelensky's warning and frame the Black Sea situation as a global food-security and humanitarian threat, pointing to specific Russian strikes on vessels and port infrastructure, including attacks on the Golden Leo, the tanker Gas Lisbon, the bulker Golden Rose and, on 9 September, the cargo vessel TEDY, in which two Azerbaijani citizens were killed. They highlight Russia's rejection of Ukraine's 13 August proposal for mutual cessation of attacks on civilian objects in the Black Sea as the cause of the blockade. Zelensky's outreach to Egypt, India, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and coordination between Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and EU High Representative Kaja Kallas on keeping the corridor open, are paired with the message that Ukraine and its partners are preparing an alternative solution for safe food exports. The domestic reassurance — that Ukrainians will not go hungry — runs alongside the warning that agrarians and exporters will be the first to bear the economic cost.
Where reporting differs
Sources differ on the precise setting of Zelensky's remarks: one account describes an online discussion at the YES conference, while another specifies the Yalta European Strategy meeting on Friday, 11 September. They also differ in emphasis on the consequences of the blockade — one stresses a possible global food crisis, while others frame it as a worldwide challenge and highlight the specific impact on African and Asian countries losing access to both Ukrainian and Russian grain.
Background
From July 2025, Russia sharply intensified strikes on Ukrainian port infrastructure and civilian shipping; in July alone Ukraine recorded 35 attacks on vessels in ports, 22 on vessels at sea and 67 strikes on port infrastructure. A strike on the vessel Golden Leo killed 10 people, while attacks on the tanker Gas Lisbon and the bulker Golden Rose led shipowners to suspend work with Odesa ports. From 22 July, vessel entries to Ukrainian seaports were temporarily suspended. On 13 August, Ukraine transmitted through a third party a proposal for mutual cessation of attacks on civilian objects in the Black Sea; on 14 August, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow did not consider it expedient to return to the 2022–2023 Black Sea Initiative or to suspend hostilities in the Black Sea. On 31 August, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Ankara had prepared a plan for safe grain passage through the Black Sea and had contacted Ukraine and Russia. On 4 September, Zelensky said Ukraine and partners were preparing a solution for safe food exports, and on 9 September a Russian drone attack on the cargo vessel TEDY killed two Azerbaijani citizens and wounded two others.