US Secretary of State accuses russia of using food as a weapon

The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has accused russia of using food as a weapon, saying it's "holding hostage" supplies not only to Ukrainians but to many countries around the world.

Reuters reports.

Addressing the UN Security Council, Blinken called on russia to lift the blockade of Ukrainian ports, making it impossible for conventional export routes.

"The russian government seems to think that using food as a weapon will help accomplish what its invasion has not — to break the spirit of the Ukrainian people. The food supply for millions of Ukrainians and millions more around the world has quite literally been held hostage," he said, noting that it is impossible to export about 20 million tons of grain from Ukraine.

Blinken added that this decision was "Moscow's and Moscow's alone."

Note

Former President Dmitry Medvedev said the other day that russia could produce products that the world so desperately needed if only it didn't "prevent [them] from working," and complained about the situation being "illogical" due to sanctions against russia and allegations of a food crisis.

russia's envoy to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, dismissed as "absolutely false" claims that russia was responsible for the growing global food crisis and accused Ukraine of allegedly keeping foreign ships in ports and mining the Black Sea.