Ukraine to send food aid to starving African countries including South Sudan despite Russian invasion

KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he wants to send around 60 ships to African nations in need of urgent food aid such as Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia and Yemen.

On the 90^th anniversary of the Holodomor, the great famine orchestrated by the Stalinist regime in the 1930s, Zelensky launched the “Grain from Ukraine” programme, a plan to export grain to the poorest countries in Africa.

“We plan to send at least 60 ships from Ukrainian ports to the countries most threatened by famine and drought,” said the Ukrainian president.

Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he had raised $150 million from more than 20 countries and the European Union to export to Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia and Yemen.

In a video message broadcast during the summit, Emmanuel Macron promised €6 million in additional aid for Ukrainian grain exports, which are vital for supplying many African and Asian countries.

The French president also recalled the “immense tragedy” of the famine of the 1930s.

“From yesterday to today, the Ukrainian nation shows its determination and forces our admiration,” the French president said.

“Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine (…) threatens the world with a food crisis,” he added.