Soraya Rodríguez (Cs) denounces Putin’s use of hunger as a weapon of war in Ukraine. Food crisis, urgent solutions and G7 decisions.
The Spanish MEP Soraya Rodríguez Ramos, of the parliamentary group Renew Europe, said today in an intervention that ‘hunger is being used as a very powerful weapon of war by Putin.’ In a recent visit to Ukraine with his colleagues, Rodriguez noted the serious crisis of accessibility and food shortages in the region.
During his speech, Rodriguez highlighted the alarming situation in which grain stores are located in Ukraine, since it is impossible to remove them by land due to the closure of the Black Sea ports. The MEP has called for urgent solutions to unlock the exit of food through European ports.
In addition, Rodriguez raised the issue of negotiations between the World Food Programme and FAO to unlock the departure of vessels with food for humanitarian programs from the Black Sea. She also noted that the food crisis goes further, as countries such as Egypt, which do not depend on food assistance, will face a terrible debt crisis because 80 % of their wheat imports come from Ukraine.
Finally, the MEP referred to the decisions taken by the G7 last week, in which it was agreed to write off debts and finance for more than 80 countries that are heavily dependent on the import of basic foods and which should help alleviate the situation in the coming months.
