Uninterrupted supplies of Russian fertilizers to Brazil: Putin

NEW DELHI: Russian President Vladimir Putin has assured his Brazilian counterpart Jair Bolsonaro that Moscow remains committed to fulfilling its obligations to ensure uninterrupted supplies of Russian fertilizers to Brazilian farmers.

As agreed during the recent BRICS summit, Putin dialled Bolsonaro on Monday to discuss the problems of global food security in detail.

"The President of Russia gave a detailed assessment of the causes of the difficult situation on the world market for agricultural products and fertilizers. The importance of restoring the architecture of free trade in foodstuffs and fertilizers, collapsed by Western sanctions, was emphasized," the Kremlin said in a statement.

In this context, Putin stressed that Russia is committed to fulfilling its obligations to ensure uninterrupted supplies of Russian fertilizers to Brazilian farmers.

"The mutual intention to consistently strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries was confirmed, including the further expansion of mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, including agriculture and energy," the statement added.

Meanwhile, Bolsonaro has hinted that Brazil can start buying diesel from Russia which has been facing unprecendented economic sanctions due to the Ukraine conflict.

"I spoke with President Putin today from Russia. Commercial exchanges between us. There we have food security and energy security. So there's a chance we can buy diesel from there. It is, for sure, a more affordable price," the local media quoted the Brazilian president telling his supporters at Palacio da Alvorada.

Brazil is a major agricultural and industrial power, and the strongest economy in Latin America and the Caribbean.

According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a specialized agency of the United Nations, it is the fourth largest agricultural producing country in the world, the main producer of coffee, sugarcane and citrus, and the second-largest soybean, beef and poultry producer.

Russia has been among the 15 largest trading partners of Brazil with the bilateral trade in 2021 amounting to $7.3 billion. Trade is complementary and mostly based on the agribusiness chain.

The two countries share the interest of expanding and diversifying trade with higher value-added products, in line with the level of development of the two economies.

Fertilizers are the main Russian export to Brazil which also includes soybeans, meat, peanuts, coffee and sugar.

However, with the sanctions levelled against Russia and the closure of Ukrainian ports, Brazil - the world's fourth largest consumer of fertilizers responsible for 8% of the world's consumption - was deeply concerned about the major disruption.

"Russia provides 25% of Brazil's fertilizer imports along with large amounts from Belarus. Brazil imports 28% of its potassium from Russia. Brazil is the second largest nitrogen importer in the world with 21% of its nitrogen imports coming from Russia," notes UkrAgroConsult, a Kiev-based company which provides analytical services to Ukrainian and international market operators.

"Brazil is urgently looking for alternatives to Eastern European fertilizers. The (Brazil's Minister of Agriculture) Minister is looking to Chile to supply more potassium and countries in the Middle East to supply more urea," it had said a few months ago.

Putin's assurance to Bolsonaro on Monday could have calmed some nerves in the Latin American nation.