Moscow: Russia's foreign ministry said on Monday that attempts by the West and the G7 group of nations in particular to isolate Moscow have worsened global food shortages.
G7 foreign ministers promised on Saturday to reinforce Russia's economic and political isolation, continue supplying weapons to Ukraine and work to ease food shortages stemming from Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of its neighbor.
"Attempts to divert Russia economically, financially and logistically from long-standing channels of international cooperation are only exacerbating economic and food crises, the foreign ministry said in a statement on its website.
"It should be noted that it was the unilateral actions of Western countries, primarily from the Group of Seven, that exacerbated the problem of breaking the logistics and financial chains of food supplies to world markets. Before the war, Ukraine and Russia combined accounted for about 29% of wheat production for the world market.
Moscow calls its actions in Ukraine a "special military operation" to disarm Ukraine and protect it from fascists. Ukraine and the West say the fascist allegation is baseless and that the war is an unprovoked act of aggression.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Grain war
The retaliatory statement from Russia comes a day after the G7 leaders warned that Russia's raging conflict in Ukraine has threatened poor economies. The unending war has stoked a global food and energy crisis due to blocked ports in Ukraine, leading to an unprecedented halt in food grain shipments to developing countries. Speaking in Berlin, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said that the war has transpired into a "global crisis." She added, "Russia has deliberately chosen to extend the military war against Ukraine now as a grain, or you can say grain war to many states in the world." Up to 50 million, mostly in the African continent and the Middle East, are feared to face a food crisis in the coming months unless Russia ends its port blockade in southern Ukraine. In a joint statement, the G7 leaders said: "The Russian war of aggression has generated one of the most severe food and energy crises in recent history, which now threatens the most vulnerable across the globe."
Wheat harvest in Ukraine to go down by 35%
The war in Ukraine has led to a "catastrophic" food crisis worldwide, World Bank President David MAL pass had said. As per assessment reports by the apex financial body, there could be at least a 37% jump in food prices in the coming days due to the ongoing Russian aggression in Ukraine.
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It is to note that Ukraine is the world's largest producer and exporter of sunflower seeds. The drop is predominantly grown in the eastern part, where Russian aggression has begun to grow momentum. On the other hand, both Russia and Ukraine are the global largest wheat producers, and export at least a quarter of the global demands of wheat feeding billions.
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