Zelensky: Hunger should never again be used as a weapon

Hunger should never again be used as a weapon. If it were not for Ukrainian food, social stability in such regions as North Africa or the Middle East would not have been maintained.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this in a new video address on Saturday, Ukrinform reports.

Indestructible people of an indestructible country!

Today, we held the first International Summit on Food Security. We held it in Kyiv – together with our partners. And precisely these days were chosen deliberately, when we commemorate the victims of the Holodomor of 1932-1933.

Ukrainians went through genocide. And today we are doing everything possible and impossible to stop Russia's new genocidal policy. A new one – but similar to the one that killed millions of people in the 20th century. And we don't just fight off aggression. Step by step, we are creating a system that will stop aggression, dismantle its consequences, and guarantee long-term security – the security of Ukraine, all of Europe, and the world.

Food security is one of the key elements of global stability. This is where Ukraine's leading role is most evident. Thanks to our export grain initiative from three Black Sea ports, we sent about 12 million tonnes of food to the world market. 40 countries of the world. Of this amount, more than two and a half million tonnes are for countries that are not just short of food, but in a severe crisis.

As part of the UN Food Programme, we have helped countries where people are literally starving or on the verge of starvation. These include Ethiopia and Yemen. We also helped Somalia and Afghanistan. And this is just the beginning.

Today, we officially announced the launch of our new humanitarian initiative. Grain From Ukraine. And we already have agreements with many partners on joint work within Grain from Ukraine.

The European Union, the United States, France, the UK, Germany, Japan, Qatar, Canada, Norway, the Netherlands, Finland, Belgium, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Italy, Austria, Spain, Sweden, Slovenia, Switzerland and others. More than 20 countries supported our food security summit. The total amount that we have accumulated for Grain From Ukraine is already about $150 million. Work continues. We are preparing up to 60 ships.

All of us together do not just send Ukrainian foodstuffs to those countries that suffer the most from the food crisis. We affirm that never again should hunger be used as a weapon. If it weren't for Ukrainian food, if it weren't for our joint leadership with our partners, social stability in such regions as North Africa or the Middle East would not have been maintained. This is exactly what Russia wanted. We must – and we can! – not allow this.

Today, I met with the Prime Minister of Belgium. We discussed our joint actions – and not only for the sake of food security. We signed a declaration on Belgium's support for Ukraine's full membership in both the European Union and NATO – this is an important signal. We discussed further political and defense cooperation, sanctions against Russia, the possibility of Belgium helping us through this winter.

Today, a meeting of the Lublin Triangle took place in Kyiv – at the level of prime ministers – Ukraine, Poland and Lithuania. They signed a joint statement on further support for Ukraine and the international legal order. So, today is a very busy diplomatic day. A day that strengthened both Ukraine and our partners.

Today, our power engineers continued restoring the system – and we now have more opportunities to generate and supply electricity. But, unfortunately, not enough to make the supply completely stable.

As of this morning, half as many subscribers have been disconnected from the grid as last night. However, in 14 regions and in Kyiv, there are still restrictions for more than a hundred thousand subscribers in each of the regions.

If consumption increases in the evening, the number of outages may increase. This once again shows how important it is now to save power and consume it rationally.

This afternoon, the enemy launched a missile attack on Dnipropetrovsk region – on private houses, on ordinary houses. There are wounded. They shelled Donetsk region, the south, and other regions.

Russia is turning this day – the day of remembrance – into a day of terror. The occupiers will definitely be responsible for all this. And we will drive them out of our land.

And one more.

Today, we managed to release 12 more Ukrainians from Russian captivity. Of them, three are civilians, two are officers, and seven are privates and sergeants. This week alone, we returned 98 of our people from captivity to Ukraine. We will return all the others.

Thanks to everyone who helps us!

Thank you to every leader who works with us for the sake of European and global security!

Glory to our soldiers and our indestructible people! Eternal memory to all those who gave their lives for Ukraine!

Glory to Ukraine.

And please, today honor the memory of Ukrainian men and women, children and adults, whose lives were taken by the Holodomor-genocide.