The UN World Food Programme director has warned that ‘50 million people in 45 countries are now just one step from famine’
in a way it is not at present. It is understandable when leaders are concentrating on their own cost of living crisis, but I can tell you from my contacts that this issue is a big preoccupation of African leaders.”supplied 23% of African fertiliser imports, doubling its 2020 share, leaving Africa dangerously exposed just as Europe has been exposed by its reliance on Russian gas.
The grain crisis is likely to be a major source of conflict at a meeting of G20 foreign ministers in Bali, the first time Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, has confronted his western opponents collectivelyBut many eastern European countries are deeply sceptical that Vladimir Putin is serious about finding a solution to the Black Sea grain blockade.
Poland and other countries are urging the EU to recognise the blockade cannot be lifted by negotiation or by force and should instead focus on exporting the grain by train through Poland. This would require a long-term contract being given to Polish and Baltic ports for them to make the necessary investments.