EC President Says Russia Fueling Global Food Crisis 歐理事會主席批 俄藉糧食危機破壞區域穩定

Russia faced international sanctions after invading Ukraine, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened numerous times to retaliate, including hinting at restricting exports of grain. On June 6, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said credible reports indicate that Russia is stealing Ukraine's grain and selling it for profit.

Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, sparking a global food crisis. The prices of grain, cooking oil, fuel, and fertilizer all soared. On June 6, European Council President Charles Michel told the United Nations Security Council that Russia is using food supplies as a stealth missile against developing countries to destabilize entire regions, and then denying it through a campaign of lies and disinformation.

Charles Michel, European Council President: “Let's get to the facts. The EU has no sanctions on the agricultural sector in Russia. Zero. And even our sanctions on the Russian transport sector do not go beyond our EU borders. You may leave the room. Maybe it's easier not to listen to the truth, ambassador.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is trying to negotiate the restoration of Ukrainian grain exports by exporting them alongside Russian grain and fertilizer. However, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there are credible reports indicating that Russia is stealing Ukraine's grain exports to sell for its own profit. 

Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State: “... that Russia is pilfering Ukraine's grain exports, to sell for its own profit. Now, Russia is hoarding its food exports as well. So, this is all deliberate. We know that President Putin is stopping food from being shipped and aggressively using his propaganda machine to deflect or distort responsibility.”

Blinken warned that the Russian military has blockaded the Black Sea to prevent Ukrainian grain from exiting, showing that Russian President Vladimir Putin is pressuring other countries to give in and cancel their sanctions against Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said what's most important at the current stage is establishing a secure corridor to ensure that ships will be able to transport grain. 

Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian President: “If we have 22-25 million tons blocked there now, it could be 75 (million tons) in autumn. What are we going to do? That's why we can't do without ports.”

Zelensky explained that trains take too long and cannot carry large amounts of grain, and exporting grain through Russian ally Belarus is not an option.

自2月24日俄羅斯入侵烏克蘭，引發全球糧食危機，包括穀物、食用油、燃料和肥料的價格都飆漲；歐洲理事會主席米歇爾，6日在聯合國安理會發表談話指出，克林姆林宮利用糧食供應，作為針對發展中國家的隱型導彈，企圖破壞區域穩定，並透過宣傳推卸責任。

歐洲理事會主席米歇爾對俄國大使說：「讓我們看看事實真相，歐盟未對俄羅斯農業部門制裁，是零，甚至對俄羅斯運輸部門的制裁，也沒有超出歐盟邊界，你可以離開房間，也許不聽實話更容易，大使。」

聯合國秘書長古提瑞斯也正嘗試通過包裹交易，以恢復烏克蘭糧食，和俄羅斯糧食與肥料出口；不過美國國務卿布林肯表示，有可靠的消息來源指出，俄國正在竊取烏克蘭糧食牟利。

美國國務卿布林肯指出：「俄羅斯正在竊取烏克蘭原本要出口的糧食，並販賣牟利，俄國現在也正在囤積其他要出口的糧食。所以這一切都是蓄意的，我們知道蒲亭總統正在阻止糧食運輸，並積極使用宣傳機器來轉移或扭曲責任。」

布林肯警告，俄軍封鎖黑海以阻止烏克蘭糧食出口，顯示蒲亭想迫使世界各國屈服，並取消制裁策略；烏克蘭總統澤倫斯基也指出，現階段最重要的建立一條安全走廊，確保各國船隊能夠運輸穀物。

烏克蘭總統澤倫斯基表示：「如果我們現在有2200到2500萬噸糧食被封鎖在那裡，到秋天時可能有7500萬噸糧食被封鎖，我們能怎麼辦？我們不能沒有港口。」

澤倫斯基也解釋，由於火車的運送時間太長，因此無法大量運輸糧食，此外透過俄國盟友白俄羅斯出口也並非選項之一。