The United States took over the rotating presidency of the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday for the month of August. The Biden administration has used the opportunity to draw attention to global food insecurity, particularly how conflict is a major driver of hunger.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield spoke Friday to VOA about how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative have impacted international food security. She also discussed U.S. concerns about the attempted military coup in Niger, relations with China at the U.N., and other priority issues for the United States.
The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
VOA: This is your third time sitting in the Security Council chair as president and the third time you've used this opportunity to focus on global food insecurity. So, tell us what you hope to achieve drawing the council's attention to this issue, and how it could make a positive difference on the ground.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations: This has been a priority for the administration. It has been a priority for me since I arrived here in New York. And as you know, this is the third time that I will be focusing on this issue. It has gotten worse. It has gotten worse because of Russia's unprovoked war on Ukraine.
More than 170 million people have been impacted by conflict, and the conflict that we see in Russia is certainly contributing to that. So, we are focusing on the issue of food being used as a weapon of war. And there is no better example of that — no worse example of that — than what Russia is doing as it relates to Ukrainian grain being allowed to get into the market to reach the people in Africa, in the Middle East, elsewhere in the world who are dependent on grain coming out of Ukraine.
VOA: On the grain, is a return to the Black Sea grain deal, is that even possible now after Russia has spent the last couple of weeks bombing infrastructure at multiple Ukrainian ports?
Thomas-Greenfield: Russia's bombing of Ukrainian ports and infrastructure is unacceptable, and of course is making the situation even worse. But I know that [U.N.] Secretary-General [Antonio] Guterres and OCHA [the U.N. office of humanitarian affairs] are continuing to attempt to bring the Russians back into the grain deal. The government of Turkey has also been engaged with the Russians to urge them to come back into this deal. Other countries in the world have issued statements urging Russia to come back into the deal. So, we remain guardedly hopeful, but in the meantime, the impact of this on the world’s market is really, really devastating.
VOA: What are you hearing from some of your counterparts here at the U.N. about that, from other countries, especially in the Global South?
Thomas-Greenfield: Well, we had a Security Council high-level meeting yesterday, where countries from all over the world, including many countries from the Global South, spoke. They all called on Russia to return to the grain deal. They expressed their concerns about the impact this is having on food supplies around the world, and I think the Russians heard the message loudly and clearly that they need to return to this deal. But this is not the only place where Russia has had such a devastating impact on the humanitarian situation. Just look at the situation on the border with Turkey and Syria, where Russia vetoed the resolution that would have allowed for the continuation of needed humanitarian assistance to reach the Syrian people across the border.
VOA: Speaking of Russia, there's a bit of breaking news today from Moscow. Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been sentenced to a further 19 years in prison on extremism charges. Your reaction?
Thomas-Greenfield: Sad but not surprised. It is clear that the Russian government, that Putin, that this authoritarian government, will use any means to restrict the voices of the opposition, restrict the voices of criticism. Navalny represents that. He is being held in an unacceptable way. He should not have been in this court system, and we condemn the actions of the Russian government as it relates to him.
VOA: Moving to another council member — there's been a lot of talk and analysis about U.S.-China relations recently. How would you characterize U.S.-China relations here at the United Nations, and are there any areas where you've been able to cooperate?
Thomas-Greenfield: We sit on the Security Council together. We are both permanent members of the Security Council; we're part of the P5 [P5 is a nickname for the five permanent members of the Security Council]. We do work together on issues of mutual interests, and there are issues where we have differences. And certainly, we have significant differences as it relates to Russia's unprovoked war in Ukraine. We have differences on how we should respond to the DPRK [North Korea] threats. But there are areas where we're working together with them. We were able to get a resolution on BINUH [the U.N. Integrated Office in Haiti] — this is the Haiti resolution — passed and will hopefully be able to work again with them on Haiti.
VOA: Niger: The ECOWAS [Economic Community of West African States] deadline for the military to reverse the coup and restore President [Mohamed] Bazoum is quickly approaching, but the military seems to be doubling down in the face of possible ECOWAS action. So how worried is Washington that this crisis could rapidly evolve into a regional conflict?
Thomas-Greenfield: We have been very, very clear in our support for ECOWAS, for ECOWAS’s statements, for ECOWAS’s involvement in trying to find a solution. They have called for the military to step aside to restore President Bazoum, who was democratically elected. We support the president, and we continue to support the Nigerien people. This is an unacceptable action by the military, and we have to work together with the region to try to push back on this.
VOA: And have nonessential U.S. personnel and their families begun departing Niger?
Thomas-Greenfield: We are in the process of removing some American citizens in an ordered departure. But our embassy remains open. Our diplomatic contacts with the various parties, including with President Bazoum, continues in Niger.
VOA: Have you spoken to your colleague [Nigerien] Ambassador [Yaou] Bakary here? Because I know today the military has fired some ambassadors, including the ambassador to Washington.
Thomas-Greenfield: I have been in touch with him. I spoke to him early on, when the situation started, and I've stayed in contact with him. I've also spoken with President Bazoum.
VOA: And finally, Ambassador, I just wanted to ask you about Afghanistan. You've been very outspoken about the Taliban’s human rights record. They've not fulfilled many commitments to the international community. They are ignoring international calls to give women their rights, minorities, et cetera. So, is the U.S. considering any alternative approaches to encourage the Taliban to address these demands?
Thomas-Greenfield: We are continuing to put pressure on them on issues related to human rights and the rights of women. We have not recognized this government, and we have been clear that we will not recognize them until they are — until they behave in such a way to show that they deserve to be — to be recognized. So, we're continuing to engage on this issue. We want to be clear to Afghan women and girls that we see no world where the women and girls of Afghanistan cannot be allowed to acquire education, to work, to pursue their dreams like women everywhere else in the world.
VOA: Ambassador, before I let you go, anything else you would like to touch upon?
Thomas-Greenfield: I'm looking forward to our month as president of the Security Council. We will be looking to bring before the council what is happening still in Sudan, and particularly, we have some concerns about the situation in Darfur, so you can look to the council having meetings on that in the coming days and weeks.
