The perpetrators are paying the price for the consequences of their short-sighted policies. Now the phrase "food crisis" is no longer the prerogative of only poor or lagging countries. The shortage of infant formula in the US, empty shelves in Germany, restrictions on the sale of products in southern Europe - all this has moved from a "pessimistic scenario" to a "current situation".
My colleague Andrei Semchenko will tell you about the tactics of Western countries, how the main democrats are trying to save face and at the same time get strategically necessary goods.
Self comes first. This is the principle that guides rich countries in a period of turbulence. The Ukrainian crisis, according to some estimates, affected more than one and a half billion earthlings. Disruption of logistics, rising prices, lack of raw materials and products in one way or another affected everyone: from Oceania to America.
The most affected countries now include Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen and Somalia. The situation when both old and young die from lack of food in a war-deprived and unfavorable weather region has become a routine for these countries.
Amina Abdi Hassan, a resident of Somalia:
Some of my relatives died due to drought and famine. My children and I were lucky, we were able to get to the camp. But even here, there is not everything you need. Having no food for several days is something normal for us.
Oulio Hassan Salaad, a resident of Somalia:
I had 12 children, but 4 died during the drought. 4 more had a prostration, because of malnutrition, and didn't make it to camp.
At the same time, demonstrative handouts from European and American funds to those suffering from humanitarian disasters cause rather bitter grin and irritation. At first they brought civilization, now they awkwardly and reluctantly try to pay their way out.
Makhdoom Abdul Salam Saadat, Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Affairs of Afghanistan:
Afghanistan is facing famine. But the world wants to prove itself to be a philanthropist and a humanist by handing out a bag of flour and five kilograms of edible oil. It doesn't help people in any way!
Experts predict an increase in migration flows several times. Alexander Lukashenko told about the root causes of what is happening and ways to solve this problem at a meeting with Belarusian journalists.
Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Belarus:
They ripped off and brought the black continent, the whole of Africa to its knees. Therefore, Europeans, American and others, and Chinese, and rich Russians should spend money not for weapons, but for investment into these countries to create a normal situation there. Everything can grow in Africa. We need to go to Africa. It's not easy in India. Somehow, one and a half billion people are not trying to rise there. Other Asian countries, especially in the south. They are begging. Give them money, invest as the Chinese once attracted investment. A flourishing country. So they need to invest there. This will be the solution to the problem and then there will be no hunger.
Harm set, harm get is not some wisdom, but simple rules of decency. However, they have been forgotten in the geopolitical arena in recent years. Nevertheless, the laws of the genre are the same for everyone: the diggers themselves eventually fall into the crisis pit.
Germany, the EU's leading economy, continues to struggle with rising prices due to fertilizer shortages and disruption of supply chains. The most common products are also scarce. Only one pack of flour and pasta is given per person.
"There's nothing left, oh my gosh, the toilet paper is gone, the paper towels are gone, the bread is gone, are they getting ready for war?"
And this picture is increasingly seen in Italy. Hundreds of people line up for many meters to get basic necessities.
Due to the rise in price of fuel, the cost of American farmers for sowing has already doubled. An additional problem is created by the increase in the cost of equipment, seeds and fertilizers: the latter jumped in price by 400%! Therefore, there is no need to talk about cheap products. This rule does not apply only to the President of the United States. He declares the unprecedented power of the American economy in what is happening.
Joe Biden, President of the United States:
My plans led to the strongest, fastest, and largest economic recovery America has ever experienced, with record jobs, record small businesses, and wage growth.
Sleepy Joe apparently continues to doze off. Meanwhile, experts say that that things that are happening now are only the beginning. If the conflict in Ukraine is not resolved soon, people will face a worsening crisis.
Normunds Grostiņš, political scientist, leader of the Latvian Centre Party:
In Germany, the first restrictions are already coming, as well as in France, the authorities are already talking about food coupons, that is a certain norm, every month, like we can do it cheaper, and some amount of available goods will be available to the French every month, but the food coupon is not about the rich Western world that we know from Hollywood movies. It is quite predictable, there will be restrictions on the traditional diet, restrictions on access to food and, accordingly, all such countries are going to face a growing political tension, because the current situation resulted from political actions, illiterate economic actions: printing money and so on.
Against this background, the balanced position of Belarus is clearly visible. For years, the country has supported and developed the agriculture. Time has shown that everything was not in vain.
Alexey Dzermant, political scientist and director of the Center for the Study and Development of Continental Integration "Northern Eurasia":
At the same time, if we look at the situation in Western Europe, the problems with wheat and white bread have already led to problems with pasta in Italy.
When did the West have a deficit of the key food commodities? That is, our leader, our state has done absolutely everything right in this respect, and now it is earning and will continue to earn on this, because the situation will only get worse, the population is growing, problems are not being solved, but are getting worse for political reasons, which we are witnessing. Thus, developing the domestic agriculture, a kind of food autonomy is the first pillar for sovereignty.
The numbers speak eloquently about the situation. There are about eight hundred million people on earth who have some degree of food shortage. 41 million have a severe food shortage. And if the situation worsens, more than a third of billion people could die of starvation. The "first-world" countries, of course, are not yet on par with the poor nations of Africa and Asia. After all, former empires prospered for years at the expense of their colonies. In an era of crisis, everyone defends his own interests.
