Pointing to the skyrocketing oil prices, shortage of food grains and fertilizers, and challenges in food and energy security, India has yet again highlighted that the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict is having a destabilizing effect with broader regional and global implications.
Speaking at a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on Ukraine in New York last night, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, TS Tirumurti, reiterated that New Delhi has been consistently calling for a complete cessation of hostilities and for dialogue and diplomacy as the only way out.
"Oil prices are skyrocketing and there is a shortage of food grains and fertilizers. This has had a disproportionate impact on the Global South and developing countries," said Tirumurti.
"The food security challenges emanating from the conflict require us to respond by going beyond constraints that bind us presently. Energy security is equally a serious concern and needs to be addressed through cooperative efforts," he added.
📺Watch: Permanent Representative @AmbTSTirumurti speak at the #UNSC Briefing on the situation in #Ukraine ⤵️@MEAIndia @IndiainUkraine @IndEmbMoscow pic.twitter.com/KZ6lj3MPdu
— India at UN, NY (@IndiaUNNewYork) May 5, 2022
Calling for guarantees of safe passage for delivery of essential humanitarian and medical supplies, including through the establishment of humanitarian corridors, Tirumurti emphasized that humanitarian action must never be politicized.
"We acknowledge the efforts made by the Secretary-General, particularly the findings of the Global Crisis Response Group Task Team. We welcome their recommendation for exempting purchases of food by WFP (World Food Programme) for humanitarian assistance from food export restrictions with immediate effect," Tirumurti said.
"It is important that similar exemptions are provided to all member states and relevant stakeholders, who are contributing to this global humanitarian effort," he added.
While welcoming the UN Secretary-General's visit to Moscow and Kyiv and his engagement with the leaders of the Russian Federation and Ukraine, India oncea again strongly condemned the killing of civilians in Bucha and expressed support for an independent investigation.
"We agree that the immediate priority is of evacuation of innocent civilians from areas witnessing intense fighting. We appreciate the efforts of the United Nations in evacuating civilian population from Mariupol. We hope these efforts will extend to other areas as well," said India's Permanent Representative to the UN.
Briefing the Security Council on his visit to Moscow and Kiev last week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that his meetings with Presidents Putin and Zelenskyy also focused on worldwide food security.
"A meaningful solution to global food insecurity requires reintegrating Ukraine's agricultural production and the food and fertilizer production of Russia and Belarus into world markets, despite the war," he said.
Guterres said that the worldwide implications of ongoing war were in full view in his subsequent travels to West Africa.
"In Senegal, Niger and Nigeria, I heard direct testimony from leaders and civil society on how the war is unleashing a food security crisis," he mentioned.
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