UN says Ukraine war threatens to devastate many poor nations

By EDITH M. LEDERER
Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A U.N. task force warns that Russia’s war on Ukraine threatens to devastate the economies of many developing countries that are now facing even higher food and energy costs and increasingly difficult financial conditions. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres released a Wednesday saying that the war is “supercharging” a crisis in food, energy and finance in poorer countries that were already struggling to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and a lack of funding for economic recovery. He said: “As many as 1.7 billion people are now highly exposed to disruptions in food, energy and finance systems.”