Jaishankar warns of ‘major food crisis’

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has warned of a “major food crisis” in the coming months, in addition to the already significant fertilizer shortages the world is witnessing due to the Ukraine and Iran conflicts, saying the situation is “very, very stressful” for Global South economies.

“… this is a big concern for us, which is, if you look at these two conflicts, the Ukraine and now the Iran-Gulf conflict, they’ve actually had a devastating impact on Global South economies,” Mr. Jaishankar said during a conversation hosted at Asia Society in New York.

He said there is particular concern about the energy situation, as the “market is very tight,” and on top of that, if “people play politics with it, that adds to the complications in the market,” as that will drive up prices at a time when people should be stabilizing prices.

“So part of it is actually the security of oil supplies, and part of it is the politics of oil supplies, and they are feeding into each other, and they are creating a double crisis or an aggravated crisis,” he said.

On the concerning food situation amid the raging global conflicts, Mr. Jaishankar said, “We are today looking at a situation where some of the major grain exporters will not be able to send out their shipments, particularly out to the Black Sea.”