Canada will help Ukraine find options on how to export stored grain to maintain global food security that has been shaken by the Russian invasion of the country, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said late on Sunday.
Nearly 25 million tonnes of grain are stranded in Ukraine and unable to leave the country due to infrastructure challenges and blocked ports on the Black Sea, including in Mariupol, a UN food agency official said last week.
Food prices hit record highs in March after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which was the world’s fourth largest exporter of corn in the 2020/21 season and the sixth largest exporter of wheat. In April, prices had a small drop.
“We know that people around the world will go hungry because of Russia’s actions,” Trudeau said in an interview with Reuters.
“There are grains waiting to be shipped from Ukraine. We have to make sure that Russia doesn’t stop the grain the world needs from being released.”
Since Moscow launched what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine in late February, Ukraine has been forced to export grain by train across the western border.
Kiev has also been looking to use the ports on the Danube River in the south of the country to help with exports.
Shipments via the Danube River could be part of the solution, Trudeau said, not revealing details but adding that several options are being considered.
“We are just looking to solve a very straightforward problem.”
Analysts have warned that Ukraine will face a significant shortage of storage facilities in the 2022/23 season due to a sharp drop in exports.
Trudeau, on an unannounced visit to Ukraine, said after his meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Sunday that Canada is providing $25 million to the UN World Food Program as part of efforts to maintain food security.
Canada will also remove trade tariffs on all Ukrainian imports into Canada next year.
Source: CNN Brasil
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