The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 26 November 2022.
Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food.
We strongly believe that this right, not a privilege, is inalienable for all people, for all countries along with the right to life and liberty. Every country must be reliably protected from famine.
At the same time, any state that provokes famine and tries to make access to food a privilege must face the toughest reaction from the world.
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, the world market has received 10 million tonnes of agricultural products less than in the same period last year. This means that the food security of millions of people around the world is seriously threatened.
These are just the initial consequences of the Russian blockade of the Ukrainian ports and Russia’s attempts to use missile strikes to prevent Ukraine from building new export logistics. Moscow’s actions deserve strong condemnation and must result in bringing those responsible to account.
However, even in such conditions, Ukraine in cooperation with international partners is actively engaged in search for ways to provide agricultural products to those in need. In particular, by supporting Somalia, Ethiopia, the Republic of the Sudan, Yemen, Kenya and Nigeria, and continuing grain exports to Africa, Asia, Europe, and the American continent.
Ukraine has always been and remains a reliable contributor to global food supplies and partner of the UN World Food Programme, supporting, in the spirit of global solidarity, efforts aimed at achieving food security and improved nutrition throughout the world.
Taking into consideration that approximately 70 million socially unprotected people, particularly from Africa and Asia, are at risk of hunger according to the UN statistics,
noting the fact of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, which will cause food insecurity for millions of people around the world, with Africa suffering the most,
pointing out the deliberate months-long blockade of Ukraine’s ports by Russia, which has put hundreds of millions of people around the world on the verge of hunger, as well as Russia’s repeated attempts to block the Black Sea Grain Initiative to continue blackmailing the world with interrupting the food supplies to achieve its aggressive and revisionist aims, emphasizing the role of Ukraine as an essential guarantor to the global food security and the effective operation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which has sent more than 10 million tonnes of grain worldwide, including the countries that were most affected by hunger,
We underscore the necessity to act persistently and in coordination to achieve the goals of the 2021 Food Systems Summit, as well as to respond to immediate humanitarian needs and build more resilient agriculture and food systems.
We recall the United Nations General Assembly resolution “State of Global Food Insecurity” adopted on 23 May 2022 that called on the international community to urgently support countries affected by the food security crisis through coordinated action.
We welcome the initiative of the Secretary-General to establish a Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy, and Finance; and call upon Member States and other relevant stakeholders to support the functioning of food, agriculture supply chains and keep trade channels and markets open for the deliveries of food.
We welcome the EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes, which have facilitated the export of over 17 million tonnes of Ukrainian agricultural goods since May by road, rail and through Black Sea and Danube ports. Together, the Solidarity Lanes and the Black Sea grain initiative have taken more than 28 million tonnes of Ukrainian grain, oilseeds and related products to world markets, including to the countries most in need. We welcome the further boosting of the Solidarity Lanes by the European Commission, working with partner Financial Institutions (the European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the World Bank), which have mobilised EUR 1 billion of additional funding.
We condemn Russia’s aggression aimed at the destruction of the civil infrastructure of Ukraine and global food security.
We strongly urge the Russian Federation to stop its brutal war of aggression against Ukraine and to restore its territorial integrity by fully withdrawing all military units from entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.
We call for support of attempts of Ukraine, Türkiye, and the UN to prolong the Black Sea Grain Initiative and continue to provide food supplies for the countries that are most affected by hunger.
We welcome continuous joint efforts of the international community to prioritize global food security and to support multilateral efforts in finding acceptable solutions to the crisis.
With this aim, today we support the initiative of Ukraine and we are launching the Humanitarian Program “Grain from Ukraine” which will establish the framework to deliver Ukrainian food to the countries of Africa and Asia, which are most affected by hunger.
We set an ambitious and important goal for ourselves and invite other states and socially responsible businesses to support the implementation of this Humanitarian Program, particularly by financing the shipment of grain for the needs of Africa and Asia.
We are convinced that we will jointly overcome the grave humanitarian and economic consequences of the global food crisis caused by Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine.
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