Rubio highlights food security issues at G20 summit

The United States on Saturday urged against using food trade as a tool for "economic or political coercion," while acknowledging the difficulty of reaching a G20 consensus as foreign ministers wrapped talks. The US comments sum up a two-day meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. "We are aligned at least in our goal and our understanding that it's a serious problem, although I cannot say we are aligned on how to solve it," said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who hosted the gathering. He referred to the rise of food security problems as a result of energy, fertiliser and agricultural products being unable to reach their destinations as sea lanes come under attack. This comes against the backdrop of the Russia-Ukraine war and follows Iran's retaliation for US and Israeli strikes earlier this year. "It is important the global community agree that trade in food and agricultural products should not be used as a tool for economic or political coercion," said a chair statement released on Saturday by the US G20 presidency. The talks among the Group of 20 major economies — which includes China, France, Germany, India, Japan and Russia — also took place days before US midterm elections, in which high energy prices are a...