G7 stresses there will be 'no recognition' to changes in Ukraine's borders

Group of Seven G7 countries —Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Canada, USA, France and Japan— on Saturday, May 14 said that they would not internationally recognize the border changes in Ukraine after the Russian occupation of the towns and cities. During a press conference held by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, the G7 leaders, "We will never accept border changes that Russia wants to enforce by force.” In a joint statement, published later after a meeting, the G7 nations stressed, "We will never recognize the borders that Russia tried to reshape through military aggression.”

'We will supply weapons to Ukraine..' say G7 countries 

G7 countries also pledged military support to Ukraine saying, “We will supply weapons to Ukraine as long as it is necessary." Furthermore, they stated that Russia's actions in Ukraine were "not provoked by anything” and are "illegal and not justified by anything." The ministers added that Ukraine "has the right to self-defense” as they also announced that the weaponry would be supplied as aid for Ukraine to protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The G7 condemned Russia’s aggressive measures in Ukraine, including the war atrocities on the civilians. Russia’s actions have "worsened the prospects for the development of the global economy, leading to a strong increase in food, fuel and energy prices,” they said. Further, they condemned the global food insecurity caused due to war, and called on Russia to end the "blockade of Ukraine's grain exports.” 

Leaders of the G7 noted that there are at least 43 million people on the verge of hunger due to the global food shortage. They asked Russia to remove the blockade and let Ukraine’s grains export pass, adding that "This can only be the first step.” They emphasised that the invasion has allegedly "led to one of the most serious food and energy crises in recent history” as they called for "coordinated multilateral actions to maintain global food security."

UN calls for end to Russian blockade of Ukraine's sea ports

A  top UN official called for the immediate removal of Vladimir Putin’s blockade of Ukraine's seaport, saying "If you have any heart at all for the rest of the world, regardless of how you feel about Ukraine, you need to open up those ports." Head of World Food Programme (WFP) David Beasley urged the Russian President to allow the export of vital agricultural export from Ukraine in a televised interview. "Millions of people around the world will die because these ports are being blocked,' he warned.

Nearly 25 million tonnes of grains stuck in Ukraine for global supply are unable to be shipped, Josef Schmidhuber, Deputy Director of United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization told a Geneva press briefing via video conferencing. Ukraine is the world’s fourth-largest exporter of maize (corn) as per the International Grains Council data but the war has obstructed exports and has pushed the world on the verge of a hunger crisis, the UN food agency official said. "If you don't get this port issue resolved and open, Ukraine's economy completely collapses," Beasley told a conference in New York.