Statement by the MFA of Ukraine on the occasion of World Food Day

On October 16, World Food Day, we honor the efforts of the international community to strengthen global food security – a joint effort by governments, international organizations, businesses and farmers to make hunger a thing of the past.

The United Nations, and its specialized agencies, in particular the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Program (WFP), play a key role in these efforts.

Their main goal is to cooperate with the governments of member states, partners and communities to end hunger, develop sustainable agriculture and preserve the planet’s natural resources.

Ukraine plays an important role in the efforts of the international community and is one of the key allies of FAO and WFP in shaping a new architecture of global food security that is resistant to war, political blackmail, and climate risks.

Recognizing its crucial role as a security contributor, Ukraine remains a committed and reliable partner, ready to help those who need it most, despite the challenges posed by the ongoing armed aggression of the russian federation.

Since February 2022, russia has been deliberately trying to destroy Ukraine’s agricultural potential by mining Ukrainian fields, attacking elevators and agricultural machinery, and persecuting Ukrainian farmers.

Even food supplies delivered by the United Nations to the affected regions of Ukraine are being attacked by russia. The latest such blatant attack took place on October 13 in the Kherson region, where russian drones hit a UN humanitarian convoy.

Despite that, Ukrainian farmers risking their lives have provided more than 320,000 tonnes of food for delivery with the support of WFP to 18 countries around the world as part of the initiative of the President of Ukraine “Grain from Ukraine”.

This initiative has become a significant contribution to the joint efforts aimed at countering the attempts of the russian federation to use food as an instrument of political blackmail and push millions of people to the brink of starvation.

We are sincerely grateful to our international partners, whose support and solidarity made possible this and other Ukrainian initiatives aimed at strengthening global food security.

Despite all the challenges posed by the armed aggression of the russian federation, Ukraine will continue to be a committed contributor to global food security. As an active member of the FAO Council – the Organization’s governing body – Ukraine is ready to apply at the global level its national knowledge and experience in the areas of recovery of the agricultural sector, humanitarian demining and implementation of sustainable technologies.

On the World Food Day, we call for further work to achieve our common goal of strengthening global food security and building a sustainable future without hunger.