U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield spent a day in Ukraine recently, seeing the destruction caused by Russian forces, visiting with victims of war crimes, touring a grain-storage facility and meeting with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Afterward, Thomas-Greenfield attended a press conference, where she said it had been "an honor for me to spend the day in Ukraine," according to a transcript of her remarks published by the United States Mission to the United Nations on Nov. 8, the day of her visit.
I have seen a city and a country that is under attack," the ambassador said in the transcript. "This is a city where Russian bombs have rained down on apartments and hospitals, orphanages and playgrounds. And yet, what I have seen – and felt – during my visit here is not a city destroyed, but a city strengthened, determined to survive."
Thomas-Greenfield said in her meeting with Pres. Zelenskyy, she reaffirmed the U.S. "ironclad and unwavering commitment" to a sovereign and independent Ukraine and its people, whom she called "beyond courageous. They really are an inspiration to the world," the transcript records.
The ambassador said she and Pres. Zelenskyy discussed three priorities of her visit: holding Russia accountable for war crimes, addressing the food-security crisis and helping Ukrainians prepare for the coming winter.
"On accountability, this morning I met with victims of war crimes, as well as their families," Thomas-Greenfield said at the press conference." And they told me how horrifying their experiences were."
The ambassador said she toured a forensic lab where technicians "are meticulously examining war crimes scenes and collecting necessary evidence. Their findings will be used by officials to build the case against the perpetrators of these horrifying atrocities.
"So my message to Russian forces is simple: We will hold you accountable for your war crimes. We will have justice," the ambassador said.
Thomas-Greenfield said also that the U.S. is "very focused" on Ukraine’s energy needs as winter approaches because of Russia's continuing attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure.
"But we refuse to let Ukrainians freeze or starve because of Russia’s brutal, unnecessary, illegal, and inhumane war," she said. "So today, I visited an IDP Collective Center, partially funded by USAID, which is ensuring displaced people have food, shelter, warmth this coming winter."
During her visit to the center, the ambassador announced an additional $25 million from USAID "to support vulnerable people in Ukraine during the harsh winter ahead,” Thomas-Greenfield said.
“These new funds will expand on our winterization planning and response efforts and scale up assistance to nearly 75,000 of the most affected households," she said, according to the transcript. "The United States is proud to provide this humanitarian relief as we do everything we can to help the Ukrainian people during the harsh winter months ahead.”
The ambassador said she told Pres. Zelenskyy that food security "was a personal priority for me," the transcript records.
"We know that Ukraine has long been a breadbasket for much of the developing world," Greenfield-Thomas said. “But Russia’s invasion turned Ukraine’s rolling wheat fields into battlefields. And Russian forces have deliberately attacked so much of Ukraine’s agricultural infrastructure. They have spoiled fields, they’ve bombed grain silos, and literally stolen tractors."
She called Russia's actions "not only horrific attacks on civilian infrastructure. They are also attacks on the world's food supply."
The global effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine have made the food-security crisis even worse in hard-hit countries such as Ethiopia, South Sudan, Somalia and Yemen, which are dealing with famine, the ambassador said.
"Tonight, more than 828 million people will go to bed hungry – 828 million," Thomas-Greenfield said at the press conference. "That is why it is so important that the Black Sea Grain Initiative is renewed. I had a productive discussion on that very topic in my meeting with the Minister for Infrastructure Kubrakov today."
The Black Sea Grain Initiative, which is set to expire on Nov. 18, is the U.N.-brokered deal allowing Ukrainian grain exports enabling Ukrainian shipments through the Black Sea and to the world. Ukraine and Russia signed separate agreements last July to establish a corridor allowing grain exports out of three Ukrainian ports, and shipments of Russian fertilizer and grain.
Russia halted its participation in the deal after an alleged Ukrainian drone attack on its Black Sea fleet in Crimea on Oct. 29; Ukraine has denied involvement. Andrey Rudenko, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, said the Kremlin has not yet decided whether to extend the agreement, and Russia's representatives to the U.N. said renewal of the agreement must include increases in Russian food and fertilizer exports, the Associated Press reports.
The AP reports that Rebeca Grynspan, the U.N. trade chief overseeing Russian part of the grain deal, told the U.N. Security Council that Ukraine and Russia provide around 30 percent of the world’s exported wheat and barley, 20 percent of its corn and over 50% of its sunflower oil. Russia is also the world’s largest exporter of fertilizers, accounting for 15 percent share of global exports.
