External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Thursday shed light on the commodities shock that the Ukraine crisis has unleashed and argued in favour of the interest of the developing world. Addressing the BRICS foreign ministers-level meeting, Mr. Jaishankar sought "credible commitment of resources" by the developed economies in mitigating the threat of climate crisis.
"Knock-on effects of the Ukraine conflict have led to sharp increases in the costs of energy, food and commodities. This must be mitigated for the sake of the developing world," said Mr. Jaishankar in his speech. The senior Minister's comment highlighted the disruption that the commodities market is dealing with since the beginning of the war in Ukraine on February 24. The BRICS event was attended by the foreign ministers of China, South Africa, Brazil and Russia which is at the centre of global events because of its invasion of Ukraine.
India has been faced with a steep increase in the prices of wheat, cotton, cooking gas, metals and other items. The increase in the commodities prices has been compared to the commodities shock that was witnessed last time in the 1970s. Arguing in favour of the rights of the developing economies in a turbulent world, Mr. Jaishankar said, "The COVID pandemic followed by the Ukraine conflict is causing enormous socio-economic hardships in the developing world. We need resilient and reliable supply chains, economic decentralisation".
