EU appeals for urgent humanitarian aid to countries affected by acute food crisis

As Russian forces continue to strike its neighbouring country, Ukraine, the European Union Foreign Affairs Council, on Tuesday, approved a proposal of injecting more funds to address the humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged nation. The council noted the war created global food insecurity as the Russian forces seized the major port city, Mariupol. During the meeting, the officials agreed to disburse additional funds to the vulnerable countries which have been facing burnt of the Russia tailored food crisis.
It noted that acute hunger, malnutrition and risk of famine, are caused predominantly by poverty, but, conflicts, political instability, socioeconomic conditions, natural hazards and climate change have turned the situation worst.

According to the council, the Russian aggression against Ukraine has led to a significant drop in food, animal feed and fertiliser availability, significant price increases for food, energy and fertilisers, and has aggravated global food insecurity. "This is having dramatic consequences not only for the Ukrainian people but also for many vulnerable populations around the globe," said the EU Foreign Affairs Council in a statement on Tuesday. "In the face of these challenges, the EU will remain a responsive, responsible and reliable global actor," it added.

EU refutes Russia's claims 

Meanwhile, due to the unprecedented food crisis, the Council emphasised the urgency of delivering a swift and comprehensive global response to protect the lives, human rights and livelihoods of persons in the most vulnerable situations. As Moscow, on several occasions cited EU-backed sanctions as the main driving force behind the soaring food prices, the Union refuted the claims and said, "There are no sanctions on Russian exports of food to global markets." It said the EU sanctions are targeted in particular at the Russian government, Russia’s economy and financial system, the military and Russian elites including economic actors responsible for or supporting the destabilisation of Ukraine.

Moreover, the Council called for a robust, effective and the formation of transparent response team to address global food insecurity. The council said the team will focus on the following four strands of action: 

• Solidarity through emergency relief and support for affordability.
• Boosting sustainable production, resilience and food systems transformation.
• Facilitating trade by helping Ukraine export agricultural goods via different land routes and EU ports and by promoting open global trade in food and fertilisers.
• Effective multilateralism. 

20 million people along the Horn of Africa are facing severe hunger, says WFP

Notably, earlier this month, the World Food Programme said up to 20 million people along the Horn of Africa are facing severe hunger. Though the WFP noted the condition was not good even before Russian President Vladimir Putin initiated a brutal war against Ukraine, the situation has worsened further as the major port that supplies agricultural production to the whole world remained blocked by the Russian troops. According to the WFP report, in Somalia, an eastern African country, about 40% of the population (nearly 60 lakh) has been suffering from extreme levels of hunger.

Image: @WFP/Twitter