Sharjah24 – AFP: Russia's war in Ukraine has pushed global displacement numbers above 100 million for the first time, and the UN warns the resulting hunger crisis could force many more to flee their homes.
Efforts to address the global food insecurity crisis, which has been dramatically aggravated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, is "of paramount importance... to prevent a larger number of people moving," the United Nations refugee chief Filippo Grandi told reporters.
"If you ask me how many... I don't know, but it will be pretty big numbers."
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, traditionally a breadbasket to the world, has sparked dramatic grain and fertiliser shortages, sent global prices soaring and put hundreds of millions of people at risk from hunger.
"The impact, if this is not resolved quickly, would be devastating," Grandi said. "It is already devastating."
His comments came as he presented the UNHCR refugee agency's annual report on global displacement, showing that a record 89.3 million people were displaced at the end of 2021 -- more than doubling in a decade.
But since Russia launched its full-scale invasion on February 24, as many as 14 million Ukrainians may have fled within their own war-ravaged country or across borders as refugees, pushing global displacement past the grim 100-million mark for the first time.
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