Global food security and overcoming hunger should be priorities for the world, and the functioning of the global food system should be protected from the effects of crises and conflicts. This was stated by Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Economy of Ukraine, during her speech at the summit of diplomatic and security advisors of state leaders and political directors of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, dedicated to the implementation of the Peace Formula, proposed by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The meeting in Malta is already the third in this format. This time, representatives of more than 60 countries and international organizations gathered to discuss the practical aspects of the implementation of the Ukraine’s Peace Formula. This is a third more than at the Saudi Arabia summit in August and more than four times more than at the meeting in Denmark in June this year. A strong representation of the countries of the Global South at the meeting in Malta became extremely important.

During the summit, specific implementation plans developed by working groups, which included representatives of embassies of various countries and experts in five areas: nuclear, energy, food security, humanitarian area, and restoration of the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the world order, were presented.

During her speech at the summit, Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Economy of Ukraine, emphasized the issues of global food security. As Yuliia Svyrydenko noted, russia’s aggression against Ukraine had an extremely negative impact on the availability of food in the world. Since the beginning of the large-scale invasion, the number of people suffering from food insecurity has increased from 221 to 324 million. Even countries that do not import Ukrainian food are feeling the impact of russian aggression – as a result of food stock falling in the market and an increase in prices.

As Yuliia Svyrydenko emphasized, despite the war, Ukraine continues to fulfill its mission of ensuring global food security. The grain corridor, which became an intermediate solution, delivered a significant amount of food, in particular to Africa and Asia. And thanks to the Grain from Ukraine initiative, more than 170,000 tons of grain were sent from Ukrainian ports to Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Yemen. Even today, when the grain agreement is suspended, and russia continuously attacks Ukrainian ports, Ukraine, thanks to the new corridor, sent 700,000 tons of grain to countries in need of food. Therefore, First Deputy Prime Minister - the Minister of Economy emphasized, free and safe navigation in the Black and Azov seas is a critical point for ensuring food security.

According to Yuliia Svyrydenko, there is currently a common understanding of the goal that needs to be achieved within the framework of the implementation of the food security clause of the Peace Formula. In particular, this is the provision of conditions for uninterrupted, safe and affordable food supply from Ukraine, increasing the volume of food supply to the most vulnerable consumers around the world, etc.

“The results that we want to achieve - shipping in the Black Sea - should become safe and provided with appropriate protection, sea routes cleared of mines. The total transport capacity of Ukraine and neighboring countries should reflect the volume of agricultural goods transported from Ukraine and the region to net-importing countries. Net-importing countries should have access to food through a system of long-term contracts and regional hubs, and transport and insurance costs should be efficient and not put pressure on world prices. Opportunities to provide food aid to the most vulnerable consumers should increase, and the number of people suffering from hunger should decrease to pre-war levels. Finally, the rules for ensuring food safety should be reflected in international legal documents,” Yuliia Svyrydenko said.

According to First Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Economy of Ukraine, the main areas of work to achieve the goals are as follows:

• Creation of international security guarantees for the uninterrupted supply of food from the Black Sea basin. This area includes, in particular, the provision of anti-missile and anti-drone munitions necessary for the protection of port and logistics infrastructure in Ukraine, demining of sea lanes in the Black Sea, necessary insurance support for ships and cargo transported to and from Ukrainian seaports.
• Launching a long-term program to increase the capacity of transport routes through the EU and, first of all, to support the development of food supplies through the Baltic corridor. It is about ensuring the interoperability of transport systems, increasing the capacity of checkpoints, the capacity of the sea ports of Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Croatia, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and other coastal states for uninterrupted transportation of agricultural cargo from Ukraine and the region, further simplifying the regulatory procedures for crossing the border between Ukraine and EU member states.
• Ensuring the security of supply of goods to net-importing countries. A system of long-term contracts for the supply of products to countries suffering from food shortages and an international decentralized reserve of basic grains should be created.
• Strengthening food security programs that help the most vulnerable consumers. In particular, it is necessary to increase deliveries within the framework of the Grain from Ukraine initiative, which should become a model for additional efforts of exporting countries to eradicate hunger in the world. It is also necessary to strengthen the role of the Black Sea region in humanitarian aid within the framework of the UN World Food Program.