Ukraine calls for removing ports blockade to prevent global food crisis

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in talks with European Council President Charles Michel on May 9, that trade at Ukrainian ports is currently at a standstill, and he hopes that the international community will take immediate actions to remove the blockade imposed by Russia to accomplish wheat exports and prevent a global food crisis.

Zelenskyy said that the Russian blockade has been preventing the export of Ukrainian agricultural products, and that has caused dozens of countries around the world to reach the edge of food shortages. The situation is likely to get worse as time goes on.

Ukraine is the world’s fourth-largest corn exporter and sixth-largest wheat exporter in 2020-2021, according to the International Grains Council. Ukrainian Agriculture Minister Mikola Solsky said on Monday that the Russian-Ukrainian war has brought about a 25-30% decrease in the acreage of Ukraine’s spring crops this year compared to 2021.

In addition, an official from the United Nations food agency said earlier that Russia’s blockade measures have caused nearly 25 million tons of grains to be delayed in Ukraine. UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned last week that food shortages could not be fixed without resuming the exporting of Ukrainian agricultural products to world markets.