In New York on Monday 19 September, after a meeting of EU foreign ministers to coordinate the EU’s messages to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, described the Russian invasion of Ukraine as the European Union’s “most pressing and immediate problem”. “But for us, it is not a question of choosing between Ukraine and the others,” he assured, the UNGA being the opportunity for the EU to reaffirm its contribution to “security, stability and solidarity” in the world.
Borrell will work in New York to counter Russian disinformation, which blames EU sanctions on Russia for the price surge. “We can say that the war is affecting everybody on earth,” he said, adding, “We will continue to explain to our partners in Asia, Africa, Latin America, who is the real culprit of the growing instability, energy and food crises.”
The High Representative referred to the UN-brokered agreement, which has unblocked Ukrainian agricultural exports and has led to a decline in world food prices. “Look at the statistics - two thirds of the Ukrainian exports have gone to Africa, to the Middle East and Asia. So, it is not true what Mr Putin says,” he stressed. He reiterated that the EU sanctions, which apply only on EU territory, are aimed at “the Russian war economy, not food or agriculture”. “None of our sanctions target the trade of fertilisers between third countries and Russia. Even we are continuing to import fertilisers from Russia, with a limit”, he stated.
On Tuesday, a global summit on food security was held in New York, co-hosted by the EU and Spain among others, during which pledges were to be announced. Borrell predicted that the UN would declare a food emergency in countries such as Somalia, which he has just visited.
Ukraine. On specific assistance for Ukraine, the head of EU diplomacy welcomed the commitment of all Member States to “continue to help Ukraine defend itself”. As such, the EU will again use the ‘European Peace Facility’ to finance the supply of arms. Mr Borrell also hoped that the Foreign Affairs Council would be able to make a formal decision in October to deploy a European military training mission in Ukraine (see EUROPE 13010/1). (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)