Ukraine war is fuelling global food crisis, says UN

The world faces a global food crisis due to Russia’s war in Ukraine, with hunger levels already “at a new high”, the UN’s secretary general has warned.

Antonio Guterres, the former Portuguese prime minister who now heads the UN, said on Wednesday that he was engaged in “intense” discussions with Russia and Ukraine to improve the situation.

The Kremlin has blockaded Ukraine’s ports, leaving it unable to export more than 20 million tonnes of grains held in silos.

Given that Ukraine and Russia produce almost a third of the world’s wheat and barley, food prices have surged since the outbreak of the war, leading to growing fears about its effect on the poor.

In total, 276 million people now face severe food insecurity, up from 135 million two years ago, while 500,000 people live in famine conditions, five times more than in 2016, according to Mr Guterres.

The secretary general said the Russian invasion had exacerbated global hunger, which has also been driven up by climate change, the pandemic and inequality.

“There is no effective solution to the food crisis without reintegrating Ukraine’s food production, as well as the food and fertiliser produced by Russia and Belarus, into world markets, despite the war,” he added.

Mr Guterres said that he is “hopeful” an agreement can be reached to ensure the unrestricted export of Ukrainian grain and Russian fertiliser, but he admitted, “there is still a long way to go”.

However, it is not clear how Russia will be persuaded to end its blockade, with which it hopes to put added strain on the Ukrainian economy.

David Beasley, who runs the UN World Food Programme, was clear about the damage that would be done to the world if the blockade was not lifted, saying that “failure to open the ports will be a declaration of war on global food security, resulting in famine and destabilisation of nations as well as mass migration by necessity”.

“So I ask president Putin, if you have any heart at all, to please open these ports so that we can feed the poorest of the poor and avert famine,” he added.

US secretary of state Antony Blinken said the situation was critical, describing it as “the greatest global food security crisis of our time” and demanding that Russia open land and sea corridors to allow Ukraine to export its crops.

Their pleas came on the same day that the World Bank pledged $12bn (£9.6bn) in new funding to low-income countries to deal with food shortages and price rises.

“Food price increases are having devastating effects on the poorest and most vulnerable,” said David Malpass, the president of the World Bank Group.

The UN security council is scheduled to meet later on Thursday to discuss the issue of global food insecurity.