Ministry of Agriculture: Sanctions against Russia threaten global food security

Sanctions against Russia can have very serious consequences for the already unbalanced global agricultural market, jeopardizing the food security of countries and regions. Deputy Minister of Agriculture Sergei Levin said this at a meeting of the Ministers of Agriculture of the SCO countries, TASS reports. The recent economic quantitative easing programs carried out by a number of countries have led to an increase in inflation on a global scale. The result of such a policy, as well as uncontrolled emission and accumulation of debts, is the current food situation, Levin noted.

“In turn, illegitimate restrictions impede the movement of agricultural and food products. Bans on the supply of our products also affect Russian exports,” the Deputy Minister emphasized. “The pressure of unfriendly countries on other states in order to reduce the volume of purchases of Russian goods, including food, significantly affects these opportunities.”

In June, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the problems with the supply of Russian grain to world markets are connected with the sanctions imposed on Russian ships, although the West has repeatedly noted that the restrictions do not apply to food. At the same time, all logistics and financial chains were under sanctions, including preventing foreign ships from entering Russian ports, which exacerbated the global food crisis.

At the end of last week, Russia and the UN signed a memorandum of understanding on the export of Russian agricultural products for three years. We are talking about removing obstacles to the export of grain and fertilizers, which the US and the EU have created for the country in the areas of finance, insurance and logistics. The memorandum obliged UN Secretary General António Guterres to get Western countries to remove all restrictions. As Lavrov noted, the signing of the memorandum "once again underlines the absolutely artificial nature of the attempts made by the West to shift the blame on Russia for problems with the supply of grain to world markets."

Despite external circumstances, according to Levin, good results are predicted in Russia this year both in terms of production and export of agricultural products. “This will allow our country to continue to provide its contribution to the fight against hunger and malnutrition,” the deputy head of the agricultural department emphasized. According to the results of the previous two years, Russia became a net exporter of food, the country ranks first in the world in terms of wheat exports, and is one of the largest suppliers of vegetable oils, fish and seafood. In 2021, the export of agricultural raw materials and food exceeded $37 billion, an increase of 21% compared to 2020.