DISINFO: Only 5% of the grain that the West exports from Ukraine goes to the poorest countries
SUMMARY
The West is favouring grain exports from Ukraine under the guise of “providing food security for the world's poorest countries” but everything goes to the same European countries. Only 5% goes to the poorest countries.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative whose goal is to deny Russia's responsibility for growing food crisis and supply insecurity by stating that most of Ukraine's grain ships are sent to rich European countries and only 5% to the poorest. This false allegation goes in line with a wider pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign aiming to blame Western countries for a global food crisis engineered by Russia as part of its unjustified aggression against Ukraine.
Russia is responsible of the global food crisis as this is a consequence of the unprovoked and unjustified Russian invasion of Ukraine: naval blockade of Ukrainian posts, bombardment of transport infrastructure and shelling of farming regions. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has destabilised global food markets and is driving food prices up due to increased cost of production, transport and freight insurance. Russia has destroyed substantial food stocks, production, as well as processing and transport capacities in Ukraine.
If we look at the database of the UN Black Sea Grain Initiative, as of 23 September, out of the 203 shipments, less then half, only 92 - headed to EU countries. The majority headed for other countries like Turkey, Egypt, China, and India. Also this does not mean that these are their final destinations, as grain will be redistributed from some of these harbours to other countries.
See also article 15. of the conclusions of the European Council of 20 and 21 October 2022 which states:
Russia, by weaponising food in its war against Ukraine, is solely responsible for the global food security crisis it has provoked. Russia’s war of aggression has triggered disruptions of agricultural production, supply chains and trade that have driven world food and fertiliser prices to unprecedented levels. The EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes have made possible the export of significant volumes of Ukrainian crops, agricultural products and fertilisers to the countries most in need.
See similar cases claiming that Western sanctions cause food crisis and price growth, that the food crisis has nothing to do with the Russian special operation, that Russia places no obstacles on the export of Ukrainian grain, or that EU is causing a global food shortage by keeping all the grain from Ukraine.