Ukraine conflict: The EU accuses Russia for the food shortage that prompted the walkout

Russia’s UN envoy rushed out of a UN Security Council meeting after the president of the European Council blamed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for the worldwide food crisis.

According to Charles Michel, Russia is using food as a “stealth missile” against the developing countries, driving people into poverty.

Mr Michel was accused of propagating misinformation by Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia.

Food has become stranded at Ukrainian ports as a result of the conflict.

Ukraine exports a lot of cooking oil and foodstuffs like maize and wheat. Russia also exports a large amount of grain and fertilizer. The lack of these exports has forced the price of alternatives to skyrocket.

“Let’s be honest, Ambassador of the Russian Federation, the Kremlin is using food supplies as a stealth missile against developing nations,” Mr Michel said at a Security Council meeting in New York.

“The devastating consequences of Russia’s war are reverberating around the world, rising food prices, pushing people into poverty, and destabilizing entire areas.”

“Russia is exclusively to blame for the food problem.”

He claimed that he has seen for himself the millions of tonnes of grain stranded in the Ukrainian port of Odesa due to a Russian naval blockade.

Mr Michel also accused Russia of stealing grain and hindering crop planting and harvesting in Ukraine as a result of its military presence there.

Mr Nebenzia stormed out as a result of his remarks. Mr Michel approached him directly as he departed, saying, “You may leave the room; sometimes, it’s simpler not to listen to the reality.”

Mr Nebenzia told Reuters that he couldn’t stay due to “the lies that Charles Michel came here to promote.”

Separately, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that Russia is blocking Ukrainian grain shipments from leaving the country and that Russian forces are destroying Ukrainian agricultural infrastructure.

Speaking during a virtual roundtable with philanthropists, non-governmental organizations and private sector entities, Mr Blinken said.

“There are somewhere around 20 million tonnes of wheat that are trapped in silos near Odesa and in ships literally filled with grain that are stuck in the Odesa port because of this Russian blockade.”

He, like Mr. Michel, stated that there were reliable claims that Russia was “pilfering” Ukrainian grain to sell for profit.