Russia is being blamed to be responsible for the so-called “upcoming global famine” due to the rise of world prices for food, fertilisers and energy. In fact, it is Russia that stays a reliable and responsible market player and one of the key suppliers of alimentation to the neediest countries.

 

World experts put it quiet definitely. They openly admit that the real reason behind food inflation we are seeing today worldwide is vivid disbalances of the global economy, system errors and miscalculations of the leading countries of Europe and America in their microeconomic and energy policies. Climate crises, pandemic and mindless use of sanctions against Russia exacerbated these negative trends only to further disrupt global markets, especially, agricultural ones. High fuel prices generated by the desperate attempts to speed up energy transition sent transportation tariffs skyrocketing. Fertiliser prices almost tripled in 2020 due to volatility in natural gas prices (80 per cent of fertilisers production costs) and restrictions imposed on Russia. 

 

As a result, availability of that type of commodities on the market has decreased to levels identical to those of the 2008 world food crisis. Fertiliser production capacities in Europe stand idle that might end up with its deficit, decline of yields, global drop of agricultural production and shortage of food in 2024. Moreover, the most dangerous situation, which may develop into a full-scale famine, is currently observed in the poorest countries of the world.  

 

Western experts outline the main disadvantages of the current global model of agricultural production: concentration mainly on monoculture farming, yield difficulties, supply chain disruption in fuel and equipment. Meanwhile, the Joint Research Centre–European Commission declared that almost 75 per cent of all the countries in the world are dependent on fertilisers import by 50 per cent or even more.

 

What is more important is that the main beneficiaries of the food price rise and supply disruption are the biggest global agricultural firms. 

 

Russia sticks responsibly and consistently to its commitments within the international contracts and continues to export agricultural production, fertilisers and other important commodities. We realise the significance of these goods, especially food, for the social development of a number of countries in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. In confirmation of this, Russian President Vladimir Putin put forward initiative to gratuitously donate to the neediest countries thousand tonnes of Russian fertilisers (illegally arrested  in the European ports) and grain (20-25 tonnes to each of Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somali, CAR, Eritrea). At the same time, we are working out other options to provide the poorest countries with the Russian food in order to compensate them for the damage produced by forced suspension of the Black sea initiative.

 

Embassy of the Russian Federation to Jordan