FM highlights food security as pillar of international peace, stability at G7 meeting

Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Egyptian Expatriates Badr Abdelatty said food security is a fundamental pillar of international peace and stability, warning that conflicts, geopolitical tensions, climate change and disruptions to global supply chains are driving up food prices and placing mounting pressure on developing countries.

He outlined Egypt’s national efforts to strengthen food security by boosting agricultural production, diversifying import sources and upgrading storage and distribution systems.

Abdelatty made the remarks on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, while delivering a keynote address at a session on food security under the theme “Stability in the Middle East,” held as part of the G7 ministerial meeting in Paris.

The session brought together the foreign ministers of France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Germany, Italy and Japan, as well as the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Brazil and South Korea.

Abdelatty said the region was beset by multiple conflicts and stressed that political solutions, dialogue and diplomacy were the only way forward, ruling out military solutions to these disputes.

He pointed to the catastrophic situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel’s restrictions on the entry of aid into Gaza and settler violence in the West Bank.

He stressed the need to ensure the regular flow of food commodities and agricultural production inputs, while safeguarding freedom of navigation through vital maritime routes. He also rejected the use of food as a means of political pressure or as a weapon in conflicts, underscoring the need to protect civilians and agricultural facilities and ensure the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

Abdelatty said Egypt’s hosting of the 18th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP18) in 2028 would offer an opportunity to strengthen international cooperation in addressing drought and promoting the water-food nexus and land restoration, particularly in Africa.

He also stressed the importance of providing developing countries with the financing needed to adapt to climate change without imposing additional debt burdens on them.

The foreign minister warned that food security challenges were worsening in developing food-importing countries, particularly in Africa and the Arab region, as a result of conflicts, displacement and water scarcity.

Citing the situations in Gaza and Sudan, he said these crises were having severe repercussions for food supplies and livelihoods. He called for safe, adequate, regular and unhindered access for humanitarian aid, alongside efforts to restore domestic production capacity and rehabilitate infrastructure.

Abdelatty affirmed Egypt’s readiness to contribute to strengthening regional food security, drawing on its strategic location, infrastructure, ports, transport and logistics networks, grain storage facilities and food-processing capabilities. These assets, he said, could support global trade flows and the distribution of food commodities.