Because of Ukraine, other tragedies in the world are neglected

"Were we equally determined during the tragedies in Syria, Libya, Yemen? And didn't the West continue as if nothing had happened after the wars in the Congo and the Horn of Africa?" asked Polish President Andrzej Duda

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A classroom in the Sagaing area of ​​Myanmar after a rocket attack, Photo: Beta/AP
A classroom in the Sagaing area of ​​Myanmar after a rocket attack, Photo: Beta/AP
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

In speech after speech, world leaders mostly focused on the topic of this year's meeting of the United Nations General Assembly - Russia's war in Ukraine.

A few, like Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari, urged the world not to forget everything else. He also did not hesitate to mention the biggest military conflict in Europe since the Second World War. But he did not talk about the conflict itself, nor about its consequences in the form of disruptions in the food, fuel and fertilizer markets.

"The ongoing war in Ukraine makes it difficult to deal with the issues that come up every year in the debates of this assembly."

He listed some of them: inequality, nuclear disarmament, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the more than one million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar who have been living in limbo in Bangladesh for years.

In an environment where words are scrutinized, confrontations calibrated, and where there is acute concern that the war and its wider effects could worsen, no one dismissed the importance of the conflict.

However, comments like Buhari's speak of a certain discomfort, which sometimes borders on frustration, due to the preoccupation of the international community with the war in Ukraine, writes the Associated Press (AP).

Rohingya in a refugee camp in Bangladesh on the fifth anniversary of their escape from Myanmar
Rohingya in a refugee camp in Bangladesh on the fifth anniversary of their escape from Myanmarphoto: Reuters

United States Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield spoke about Washington's plans to address climate change, the food crisis, health and other issues.

"Other countries have expressed concern that while we are focused on Ukraine, we are not paying attention to what is happening in other crises around the world," she said, arguing that this is not the case.

However, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken complained at a Security Council meeting a few days later that the Russian invasion was distracting the UN from working on other important issues.

AP points out that for years at the UN assembly, the focus has been on some focal point or development of events that take a lot of diplomatic energy. Former UN official Jan Egeland said that "the world manages to focus on one crisis at a time".

"However, I cannot remember in the many years that I have spent as an aid worker or a diplomat that the focus has ever been so strongly on one conflict while the world is falling apart elsewhere," Egeland, now secretary general of the International humanitarian group Norwegian Refugee Council.

AP adds that it was expected that no one was surprised by the attention given to the conflict with echoes of the Cold War, indirect nuclear threats from Russian President Vladimir Putin, shelling that threatened the largest atomic power plant on the continent and far-reaching economic effects.

The sense of urgency was only heightened during last week's gathering in New York as Russia announced the mobilization of reserve military forces.

Polish President Andrzej Duda emphasized in his speech that "we must not show any 'war weariness'" regarding the conflict. But he also noted that a recent trip to Africa made him think about how the West treats other conflicts.

Andrzej Duda
Andrzej Dudaphoto: Reuters

"Were we equally determined during the tragedies in Syria, Libya, Yemen?" Duda said. "And didn't the West continue as if nothing had happened after the wars in the Congo and the Horn of Africa?"

"While we condemn the invasion of Ukraine," the Polish leader added, "do we attach equal importance to the fight against mercenaries who seek to destabilize the Sahel and threaten many other countries in Africa?"

During the seven months of the war, there have been notable observations from some quarters about how quickly and extensively rich and powerful nations have mobilized money, military aid, General Assembly votes to support Ukraine and shelter its residents, compared to the global response to some other conflicts, reminds AP.

South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor told reporters and a visiting Blinken last month that while the war is terrible, "we should be just as concerned about what's happening to the people of Palestine as we are about what's happening to the people of Ukraine." ".

At the General Assembly, she added that, from South Africa's point of view, "our biggest global challenges are poverty, inequality, unemployment and feeling completely ignored and excluded".

Naledi Pandora
Naledi Pandoraphoto: Reuters

Tuvalu Prime Minister Kausea Natano said in an AP interview on the sidelines of the assembly that countries should not use the war as an "excuse" to ignore their financial commitments to what is his island nation's top priority: combating climate change.

Bolivian President Luis Arce compared the billions of dollars spent on fighting in Ukraine in a few months to the $11 billion committed to the UN-sponsored Green Climate Fund over more than a decade.

Most leaders made time for questions beyond Ukraine in their allotted, though not always respected, 15 minutes at the microphone. And some mentioned the war only in passing, or not at all.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has devoted his time to criticizing capitalism, consumerism and the US-led war on drugs, particularly its focus on eradicating the coca plant.

Kyrgyz President Sadir Zhaparov, whose country has close ties to Russia, focused on his homeland's border dispute with Tajikistan. King Abdullah II of Jordan briefly mentioned the effects of the war on the food supply, then moved on to sustainable economic growth, Syrian refugees and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

A Palestinian woman helps her sister get ready for school in the occupied West Bank
A Palestinian woman helps her sister get ready for school in the occupied West Bankphoto: Reuters

Ukraine is undoubtedly the dominant concern for the European Union. But the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, insisted that the bloc had not lost sight of other problems.

"It is not a matter of choosing between Ukraine and the others. We can achieve everything at the same time," he said ahead of the UN assembly.

However, diplomatic attention and time are precious and sought-after resources, as well as money and the will to help, according to AP.

Data from the UN humanitarian office show that governments and private organizations have provided around $3,7 billion this year to aid Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees. About two billion dollars have been collected for war-torn Yemen, where, according to the UN, more than 17 million people are suffering from acute hunger.

Only $428 million was raised for Myanmar and the Rohingya in Bangladesh.

Egeland's organization helps displaced people around the world, including Ukraine. But he feels "an urgent need to draw attention to the absolute freefalls elsewhere".

"The situation has not improved in the Congo, nor in Yemen, nor in Myanmar, nor in Venezuela because it has worsened a lot in Europe, in Ukraine and around it," said Egeland. "We must fight for those who are starving in the shadow of this terrible war in Ukraine."

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