Odesa strike shows it will not be easy to export grain via ports - Ukraine

Ukraine could export 60 million tonnes of grain in eight to nine months if its ports were not blockaded, but Russia's strike on the port of Odesa showed it will definitely not be that easy, an economic adviser to the Ukrainian president said on Saturday.

Ukraine could earn $10 billion by exporting 20 million tonnes of grain in silos in addition to 40 million tonnes from its new harvest, economic adviser Oleh Ustenko said on television.

Ukraine will need 20 to 24 months to export those volumes if its ports are not functioning properly, he said.