Russia and Ukraine are coordinating the drafts of documents needed for the creation of a Black Sea grain pool committee.

"We are now coordinating draft documents for the creation of this pool," Russian Agriculture Minister Nikolai Fyodorov said during an interview with Russia 24 television in comments on the two countries' interaction in the field of agriculture. "We are also inviting Kazakhstan in on equal terms, because Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine really need Black Sea ports so that transportation logistics are convenient, beneficial, in order for our grain to have a place on the world food market," Fyodorov said.

These three countries account for around 20% of world grain exports, he said. "With the right approach we can, according to our evaluations, achieve control over 30% of the world's grain export market," he said.

Experts estimate the world population will top nine billion by 2050, so the need for food, most of all grain, will be up 60% or more, Fyodorov said. From the standpoint of domestic policy, "they assume that we can join our resources, consolidate efforts, and better respond [for example] to the growing problem of world hunger," the minister said. For Russia, Fyodorov said, Ukraine "is a very important, major partner." Russia buys $2.1 billion worth of Ukrainian agricultural product annually. "So our colleagues from Ukraine are hugely interested in the Russian market, and the interest is mutual," he said.