Russia uses hunger as a weapon of war in Ukraine
Ukraine’s entire future is in peril as farmers are unable to harvest or sell grain
Ukraine and Russia aren’t just waging war on the battlefield, said Federica Marsi in Al Jazeera (Doha), they’re locked in conflict in the wheat field, too. Ukraine, the world’s fifth biggest wheat exporter, accounts for 9% of global sales. but since the Russian invasion, 22 million tons of grain have been rotting in silos inside the country. And with war raging, the wheat harvest is expected to fall by 40% this year. If the country’s farmers can’t farm or sell grain, Ukraine’s entire future is in peril.
Putin is using hunger as a weapon, said Daniel Hegedus on Transitions (Prague). And now that Russia has occupied most of Ukraine’s major ports and blockaded Kyiv’s main harbour, Odesa, the Black Sea has become the fulcrum of this conflict. Before the war, 90% of Ukraine’s wheat exports went by sea, and it’s quite a challenge to increase the amount sent overland by rail or truck. Ukraine’s railway has a wider gauge than its European neighbours, so every rail shipment must be unloaded and put on a different train. Thus, for now, “the best hope of averting famine” is to reopen exports from Odesa.
That’s where Turkey comes in, said Hilal Kaplan in Daily Sabah (Istanbul). Ankara has for months been striving to act as mediator in this conflict. It hasn’t made much headway because Ukraine has littered the Black Sea with mines to protect itself from Russian warships, making it hard to move goods out of its ports; and Kyiv, wary of the Russian threat, still refuses to clear the mines.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Yet Turkey has a powerful hand to play, as it controls access from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. This month, Turkish officials, at Ukraine’s request, detained a Russian cargo ship about to enter the Bosphorus on suspicion it was carrying 7,000 tonnes of Ukrainian grain stolen from the occupied port of Berdyansk. Kyiv claims Moscow has stolen 600,000 tonnes in total from its occupied territories to sell abroad, this being just the latest load.
Turkey is being duplicitous, as you can see from the way it has now let the ship sail on, said Timothy Ash in the Kyiv Post. It claims to be standing up for Ukraine’s interests, but it’s actually negotiating directly with Moscow, and has made “zero effort” to involve Kyiv or acknowledge its need for security guarantees before demining its ports. President Erdogan is unconcerned about the costs to Ukraine; he just sees an end to the war as the best way to ease Turkey’s economic crisis ahead of elections next year.
The good news said Leonid Bershidsky on Bloomberg (New York), is that even with its ports blocked, Ukraine has kept up a sizeable export stream. Meanwhile, the forecast of a bumper grain harvest in several other countries is driving wheat prices down. A “full-blown food crisis” is not, thankfully, on the cards.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Nigeria's worsening rate of maternal mortality
Under the radar Economic crisis is making hospitals unaffordable, with women increasingly not receiving the care they need
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Elevating Earth Day into a national holiday is not radical — it's practical'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
UAW scores historic win in South at VW plant
Speed Read Volkswagen workers in Tennessee have voted to join the United Auto Workers union
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How would we know if World War Three had started?
Today's Big Question With conflicts in Ukraine, Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific, the 'spark' that could ignite all-out war 'already exists'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The issue of women and conscription
Under the radar Ukraine military adviser hints at widening draft to women, as other countries weigh defence options amid global insecurity
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine's unconventional approach to reconstruction
Under the radar Digitally savvy nation uses popular app to file compensation claims, access funds and rebuild destroyed homes
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Will Ukraine's leadership reset work?
Today's Big Question Zelenskyy hints at ousting of popular military chief, but risks backlash amid dwindling munitions, delayed funding and Russian bombardment
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Imran Khan sentenced to 10 years: how powerful is Pakistan's military?
Today's Big Question The country's armed forces ignore country's economic woes, control its institutions and, critics say, engineer election results
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is Iran's endgame?
Today's Big Question Tehran seeks to supplant US and Saudi Arabia as dominant power in Middle East while forcing Israel to end Gaza war
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Israel proposes two-month pause in Gaza war in exchange for all Hamas hostages
Speed Read Deal doesn't include an agreement to end war, but might be 'the only path that could lead to a ceasefire', said US officials
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Nato official warns of all-out war with Russia in next 20 years
Speed Read Civilians must prepare for life-changing conflict and mass mobilisation, says military chief
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published