British authorities say they are not considering sending warships to the Black Sea to facilitate the departure of vessels carrying grain from Odesa, a British government spokesman said Tuesday.

"We will continue to work intensively with our international partners to look for ways to export grain from Ukraine. However, there are currently no plans to send British ships to the Black Sea," The Guardian newspaper quoted him as saying.

Earlier The Times reported that according to its sources, the UK is coordinating with its allies a potential plan to send warships to the Black Sea to escort vessels exporting Ukrainian grain.