Member of Verkhovna Rada: 'Ukraine and region may face a serious food threat’

Tomorrow will be too late if the world community does not take serious action on the grain and other food crises in Ukraine. The enemy destroys everything. They even mine the areas we cultivated before the war. We have lost control over about 20 percent of the cultivated land, Deputy Chairman of the Agrarian and Land Policy Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Stepan Chernyavskyi, a member of the ruling Servant of the People party, told the Eastern European Bureau of Report.

The MP stressed that Ukraine cannot solve this problem alone. According to him, it is necessary to liberate large areas, and for this, a lot of funds are needed: "Demining issues, logistics issues, the purchase of modern seed varieties, fuel supply, and mineral fertilizers should be resolved immediately. Tomorrow may be too late, and there could be a difficult situation with food security around the world. Before the occupation, we had more than 40 million hectares of agricultural land. Currently, about 34 million hectares remain under our control, which means that we have temporarily lost control over about 6-7 million hectares of agricultural land. We cannot use enough of what we have because of the war and because of the firing of energy sources."

Chernyavskyi noted that the Peace Formula initiated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy can be the solution to this: "We are waiting for the end of the war. The main issues are nuclear and radiation safety, food, energy, environmental safety, the return of our captured and deported citizens, and the withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine."

The deputy chairman added that Ukraine is one of the largest producers of agricultural products. It produces 2% of all grain in the world. Due to the war, there is a risk of food shortages: "The main problems are logistical issues caused by the enemy's constant shelling of our seaports and transport hubs. It is also an energy problem because the enemy is trying to destroy our energy infrastructure every day. All these together pose a major threat to the world's food security. The only way to solve this fateful problem is to unite all the countries around it. We need to reach the UN so that it finally fulfills its main duties and stops the war against Ukraine."