(C) Daily Kos
This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
A reminder - Ukraine isn't just about Ukraine; it's a global problem [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags']
Date: 2023-01-25
Via gCaptain (Reporting by Tsvetelia Tsolova; editing by Vin Shahrestani), Bulgaria Defuses Drifting Sea Mines Along Black Sea Coast
SOFIA, Jan 24 (Reuters) – Bulgaria’s navy on Tuesday defused a naval mine that had drifted close to its Black Sea coast, a day after it carried out a controlled explosion of another mine, the defence ministry said.
The news item about mines is a reminder that the consequences of the war aren’t limited to just Ukraine. While it’s been a while since Snake Island was in the news or the Russian Black Sea fleet suffered another loss, stuff happens in war. Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey all share the Black Sea — and all are members of NATO. It wouldn’t be unexpected that these countries might suffer some kind of incident that would heighten tensions for the alliance. As the report notes:
Since the war started, Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria and Ukraine have destroyed roughly 40 mines in western waters of the Black Sea.
More to the point, Russian blockades of Ukrainian food exports through the Black Sea created a global shortfall in critical food supplies and raised prices. A negotiated arrangement has allowed shipping to resume, but the effects are still being felt globally.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ukrainian exports of grain have been severely disrupted. For over four months, Russian military vessels have been blocking Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea. On 22 July 2022, an agreement was brokered by the United Nations and Türkiye to open a safe maritime humanitarian corridor in the Black Sea (the Black Sea Grain Initiative). Since then, over 600 ships full of grain and other foodstuffs have left three Ukrainian ports: Chornomorsk, Odesa and Yuzhny/Pivdennyi. While unblocking the sea export route has helped to address the global food security crisis and lower grain prices, the export backlogs remain significant… ...As of January 2023, over 18 million tonnes of grain and other foodstuffs have been exported via the Black Sea Grain Initiative. 46% of the cargo was maize, the grain most affected by blockages in Ukrainian granaries at the beginning of the war (75% of the 20 million tonnes of grain stored). It had to be moved quickly to make space for wheat from the summer harvest… ...65% of wheat exported through the Black Sea Grain Initiative reached developing countries. Maize is exported almost equally to developed and developing countries.
It’s easy to focus on just what’s happening along the front lines in Ukraine, but the larger picture is that it has consequences around the world. Food insecurity can create instability and lead to open conflict in regions of the world that are already under stress. Putin is well aware of it, and it’s one of the things he’s counting on: accept Russia’s aggression, or risk starvation.
That has to be one of the factors (or should be) driving the discussion over aid to Ukraine. Timothy Snyder’s substack newsletter Thinking About had this to say on January 23:
Why the world needs Ukrainian victory — Fifteen reasons
..13. To guarantee food supplies and prevent future starvation. Ukraine feeds much of the world. Russia threatens to use that food as a weapon. As one Russian propagandist put it, "starvation is our only hope."
The rest of the list is well worth reading.
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/1/25/2149182/-A-reminder-Ukraine-isn-t-just-about-Ukraine-it-s-a-global-problem
Published and (C) by Daily Kos
Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified.
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/
