Ukraine – France condemns Russian strikes in Ukraine (4 September 2023

France condemns the Russian strikes which targeted grain infrastructure in the Izmail district this morning. These follow the strikes at the weekend which had already targeted civilian infrastructure in the Odesa region and near Romanian territory.

Russia is thereby continuing its blackmail of global food security, marked by the systematic destruction of transit and storage facilities in Ukraine, obstacles to grain exports, and the suspension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which had allowed the shipment of 33 million tonnes of foodstuffs to 45 countries, particularly the most vulnerable countries in Asia and Africa.

As Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna has repeatedly emphasized, these acts constitute war crimes and will not go unpunished. France is maintaining – and will continue to maintain – its support for Ukraine for as long as it takes to help that country ensure its legitimate defence, strengthen its resilience and combat impunity for atrocities committed by Russia.

We shall continue taking action to strengthen global food security, which Russia is openly trying to weaken in order to make it into a political weapon.