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Ensuring sustainable food security in times of crisis: strengthening resilience and access to food

Doc. 16423: compendium of written amendments | Doc. 16423 | 24/06/2026 | Final version

Compendium index

Amendment 4 Amendment 5 Amendment 11 Amendment 6 Amendment 7 Amendment 8 Amendment 1 Amendment 12 Amendment 9 Amendment 2 Amendment 3 Amendment 10 Amendment 13 Amendment 14

Caption: AdoptedRejectedWithdrawnNo electronic votes

ADraft Resolution

1The right to food means that all human beings, both in times of peace and in times of war, must have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, adequate, safe and nutritious food that enables them to lead a healthy and active life. This right is under greater threat than ever, as overlapping crises – armed conflicts, climate shocks and the cost-of-living crisis – continue to undermine food security, food systems and nutrition worldwide.
2The Parliamentary Assembly already sounded the alarm in Resolution 2577 (2024) and Recommendation 2286 (2024) “Guaranteeing the human right to food”: it is necessary to examine the underlying characteristics of food markets that make food systems vulnerable to shocks and turn food into a strategic lever that is exploited as a form of pressure or warfare, as armed conflicts destroy agricultural production capacities, disrupt food supply chains and thus access to food.
3The Assembly is alarmed by the consequences of the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine for the food security of the Ukrainian population as well as of the rest of the world. The number of Ukrainians facing moderate or severe food insecurity was estimated at around 5 million in 2025. Prior to the Russian Federation’s war of aggression, Ukraine was a major contributor to global food security, supplying food to around 400 million people worldwide and playing a critical role for food-import-dependent countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).The blockade of Ukrainian ports in 2022 caused major disruption to global food supply chains and contributed to a sharp rise in global food prices. The World Bank estimates the war-related damages and losses suffered by Ukraine’s agricultural sector at more than 90 billion euros, a significant share of which is linked to the loss of access to land in occupied and frontline areas, destruction of storage infrastructure, agricultural machinery and production stocks, as well as mined and contaminated land, damaged irrigation systems and other productive assets, thereby compromising the world’s current food security and Ukraine’s long-term productive capacity.

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Mr Oleksandr MEREZHKO, Mr Markus WIECHEL, Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 3, insert the following paragraph:

"The Assembly further underlines that the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam by the Russian Federation has had devastating and long-lasting consequences for agricultural production, water security and the environment. The flooding of fertile agricultural land, the collapse of irrigation systems in southern Ukraine and the contamination of affected areas have significantly undermined food-production capacities and created risks for regional and global food security. The Assembly stresses the importance of documenting these damages and ensuring full accountability under international law."

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

4The Assembly underscores that the Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine has severely destabilised global food security. The destruction of Ukrainian agricultural infrastructure and the blockade of Black Sea ports have disrupted grain exports and exacerbated the vulnerabilities of the MENA region, which is highly dependent on food imports. The Assembly notes that Russian attacks against Ukrainian port and agricultural infrastructure continue to disrupt exports and global food supply chains. The Assembly condemns the looting and illegal commercialisation of Ukrainian grain by the Russian Federation from temporarily occupied territories.
5The Assembly notes with grave concern the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. According to Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) assessments, around 470 000 Palestinians were facing the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Phase 5 (Catastrophe) levels of food insecurity in 2025, while the World Food Programme (WFP) estimated in April 2026 that at least 1.6 million people, representing 77% of the population, were facing high levels of acute food insecurity. At present, only 1.5% of arable land is accessible, fishing is banned and livestock numbers have been decimated, seriously jeopardising local food production and livelihoods, as well as the ability of Palestinians in Gaza to feed themselves for decades to come. Food assistance continues to enter Gaza at levels far below those envisaged under the ceasefire arrangements in October 2025, thereby heightening the risk of famine and further undermining food security. Special attention must be paid to the extreme vulnerability of children, mothers and the elderly, who bear the heaviest burden of this food insecurity.
6In view of these alarming findings, the Assembly calls on member States of the Council of Europe to step up their support for Ukraine’s 2026-2028 multi-year agricultural reconstruction plan drawn up together with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), as well as for the relevant humanitarian and food security programmes of the WFP, to take active participation in the Food from Ukraine initiative, and to support the documentation, sharing and dissemination of the expertise developed by Ukraine in the areas of agricultural demining, digital risk mapping and the rapid restoration of productive capacities. It calls too on member States to encourage the development, under the auspices of the FAO, of an international multi-year agricultural reconstruction and rehabilitation plan for Gaza.
7The Assembly emphasises the geostrategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz for global food security. Instability in this area drives up energy, transport and fertiliser costs, thereby increasing agricultural prices. The FAO has warned that the closure of the Strait would trigger a systemic shock to global agrifood supply chains, already reflected in the rise of the FAO Food Price Index. This situation directly threatens the availability, affordability and stability of food supply, particularly in import-dependent regions. The Assembly calls for a swift opening of the Strait of Hormuz for goods that are related to food production
8Drawing on United Nations Security Council Resolution 2417 (2018), which was adopted unanimously, the Assembly strongly condemns the use of starvation as a method of warfare, the unlawful denial of access to humanitarian assistance and attacks on assets indispensable to the survival of the civilian population, in particular agricultural and food infrastructure. These attacks include, in particular, the destruction of agricultural land, irrigation systems, storage facilities, ports and transport infrastructure essential to the production, storage and distribution of food, where such destruction jeopardises civilians’ access to food. The Assembly calls on member States to strengthen international accountability mechanisms and to ensure that international law is fully and consistently applied.

24 June 2026

Tabled by Ms Aurora FLORIDIA, Ms Bisera KOSTADINOVSKA-STOJCHEVSKA, Ms Azadeh ROJHAN, Ms Valérie PILLER CARRARD, Ms Irena FERČIKOVÁ KONEČNÁ

Votes: 65 in favor 2 against 5 abstentions

In the draft resolution, paragraph 8, after the second sentence, insert the following sentence:

"The Assembly further recalls that member States must refrain from transferring arms, ammunition, military equipment or other forms of military assistance where there is a clear risk that such support may be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international humanitarian law or international human rights law, including practices contributing to starvation, the obstruction of humanitarian relief, or the destruction of civilian food systems."

9The impact of crises on food security does not stem solely from global food availability. Crises amplify the structural vulnerabilities of food systems, both at international level – given the way the global agricultural commodities market functions – and at national level – given the way domestic food markets are organised and their level of resilience. The Assembly believes that it is more urgent than ever for member States to recognise the imbalances and dependencies created by the logic of the global food market, as well as the vulnerabilities arising from the way global and national markets are currently organised. The human right to adequate food should be prioritised over economic interests in order to guarantee stable, equitable and sustainable access to food for all people.

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Mike READER, Mr Gerardo GIOVAGNOLI, Ms Alicia KEARNS, Ms Saskia KLUIT, Ms Gala VELDHOEN, Ms Sibel ARSLAN, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Baroness Lyn BROWN, Mr Perran MOON

Votes: 73 in favor 1 against 2 abstentions

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 9, insert the following paragraph:

"As experience in times of crisis repeatedly demonstrates, resilience depends on sovereign productive capacity, the ability of peoples and nations to feed themselves through their own agriculture, supported by diverse local and regional supply chains, productive farming and food production and manufacturing capability and well-paid and supported workforces, supported by strong workers' rights. The Assembly therefore considers that strengthening sovereign and local food production capability is a key condition of stable and secure access to food, in times of peace as in times of war."

Explanatory note

This strengthens the food-sovereignty principle which already concedes that crises amplify structural vulnerabilities and that the human right to food should be prioritised. It strengthens the central lesson of the Ukraine analysis, that export strength is no guarantee of resilience.

10With regard to the instrumentalisation of food as a method of warfare, the Assembly calls on member States of the Council of Europe to:
10.1support the courts responsible for investigating international crimes, including the use of starvation as a method of warfare;

24 June 2026

Tabled by Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Ms Alicia KEARNS, Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA, Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 10.1 with the following paragraph:

"support the comprehensive international and domestic accountability framework, encompassing civil society documenters, open-source intelligence providers, forensic experts, specialised domestic war crimes units, prosecutorial bodies, and competent judicial tribunals, responsible for the documentation, investigation, prosecution, and adjudication of core international crimes, with an explicit focus on the deliberate use of starvation as a method of warfare and the weaponisation of critical civilian infrastructure."

Explanatory note

Courts adjudicate rather than investigate. Therefore, mass atrocity cases require early civil society and OSINT documentation to secure digital evidence for future prosecution. Investigations must also focus on the weaponisation of civilian infrastructure and food deprivation.

10.2refrain from obstructing the work of the International Criminal Court and, in the case of States Parties to the Rome Statute, co-operate fully with it;
10.3reaffirm the obligation of aggressor States to compensate for all damages caused, including in the agricultural and food sectors;
10.4ensure the effective implementation, in domestic law, of the prohibition under international humanitarian law on starving civilians as a method of warfare, including attacks on property vital to the survival of the civilian population;

24 June 2026

Tabled by Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Ms Alicia KEARNS, Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA, Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 10.4 with the following paragraph:

"ensure the full incorporation and effective implementation within national legislation of the international humanitarian law prohibition against the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, explicitly criminalising any conduct that attacks, destroys, removes, or renders useless objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population."

Explanatory note

Additional Protocols I and II specify "objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population" rather than "property vital." They define deprivation broadly to include attacking, destroying, removing, or rendering these objects useless.

10.5condemn attacks on agricultural and food infrastructure, including farms, grain silos, irrigation systems, food storage facilities, markets, ports and energy infrastructure vital to food production and distribution;
10.6strengthen the protection of humanitarian access and food supply corridors in situations of armed conflict, in accordance with international humanitarian law.
11With regard to preventing the use of food and agricultural dependency and deprivation of humanitarian aid as tools of pressure and conflict, the Assembly urges member States to:
11.1maintain restrictive measures, including import and transit bans where appropriate, concerning agricultural inputs and fertilisers originating from the Russian Federation and Belarus, in order to reduce strategic dependencies that may be used for geopolitical pressure and to prevent trade from contributing, directly or indirectly, to the financing of the war of aggression against Ukraine;

24 June 2026

Tabled by Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Ms Alicia KEARNS, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA, Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA, Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 11.1 with the following paragraph:

"maintain and tighten already existing restrictive measures, including a full embargo on the import and transit of artificially cheap Russian fertilisers, and expand targeted sanctions to encompass the Russian State and Municipal Unitary Enterprises, as well as the affiliated maritime and logistics corporations, explicitly identified as operating in occupied territories to systematically pillage and illegally export Ukrainian grain."

Explanatory note

The amendment urges an embargo on Russian fertilisers and expands sanctions on state-affiliated enterprises. Because Russia legitimises stolen grain through state architectures to fund its military, these sanctions aim to cut off the economic engine weaponizing agriculture.

11.2use all available means, in accordance with international humanitarian law, to ensure the immediate, safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance, including food, water, medical supplies and fuel, to the civilian population in Gaza, and to ensure sustained, independent and unimpeded access for United Nations agencies and humanitarian organisations in order to avert famine and further humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Murat Cahid CINGI, Mr Mustafa CANBEY, Ms Meryem GÖKA, Ms Zeynep YILDIZ, Mr Abdurrahman BABACAN, Ms Pelin YILIK, Ms Seda GÖREN, Mr Mehmet AKALIN, Mr Sevan SIVACIOĞLU, Ms Sena Nur ÇELİK KANAT

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 11.2 with the following paragraph:

"call on the Israeli authorities, in line with the humanitarian commitments contained in the ceasefire agreement and in accordance with international humanitarian law, to ensure the immediate, safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance, including food, water, medical supplies and fuel, to the civilian population in Gaza, and to ensure sustained, independent and unimpeded access for United Nations agencies and humanitarian organisations to avert famine and further humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza."

Explanatory note

This amendment explicitly addresses the Israeli authorities, whose restrictions continue to hinder the delivery of food, water, medical supplies, fuel and humanitarian assistance to Gaza. The amendment recalls Israel's responsibility of humanitarian commitments contained in the ceasefire agreement.

12With regard to remedying violations of the right to food by means of documentation and accountability, the Assembly welcomes the recent expansion of the categories of claims relating to damage to infrastructure, production capacities, assets and economic losses suffered by legal entities and public authorities, enabling the recording not only of individual losses, but also of broader economic damage sustained by business entities and the State of Ukraine as a result of the Russian Federation’s aggression. It urges member States to:
12.1join and encourage others States to join and actively support the Enlarged Partial Agreement on the Register of Damage for Ukraine;
12.2support the development and the interpretation of the criteria of the Register of Damage to ensure that damage affecting agricultural production capacity, the livelihoods of the civilian population and food supply chains is properly documented and can be taken into account in future compensation and reconstruction efforts;
12.3support the documentation and assessment of damage affecting agricultural production capacity, the livelihoods of the civilian population and food supply chains, as carried out by the United Nations in Gaza, with a view to establishing accountability and facilitating future reconstruction efforts;
12.4reaffirm and uphold the obligation of aggressor States to provide compensation for all damage caused, including in the agricultural and food sectors.
13With regard to strengthening the resilience of food systems globally, the Assembly urges member States to:
13.1reinforce public mechanisms for regulating and co-ordinating agricultural markets, in particular through the establishment of food reserves, emergency mechanisms to protect against price spikes, transparency in market monitoring data and the strengthening of international food security monitoring and analysis systems;
13.2reduce the concentration of food supply chains and agricultural input markets by diversifying sources of supply, strengthening local and regional capacities for food and fertiliser production, and encouraging regional food solidarity agreements, with particular emphasis on regions facing a high risk of drought and declining agricultural production due to climate change, as well as on food sovereignty for rural and indigenous communities. This includes strengthening local food systems in order to build shorter, more resilient and conflict-resistant supply chains, and developing sustainable alternatives to imported chemical fertilisers;

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Mike READER, Mr Gerardo GIOVAGNOLI, Ms Saskia KLUIT, Ms Gala VELDHOEN, Ms Sibel ARSLAN, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Baroness Lyn BROWN, Ms Octavie MODERT, Mr Perran MOON

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 13.2, insert the following paragraph:

"recognise that the right of peoples to define their own food and agriculture systems is integral to long-term food security,"

Explanatory note

This strengthens the food-sovereignty argument, drawing from evidence of La Via Campesina and De Schutter, both cited in the memorandum).

13.3strengthen international co-operation to protect maritime food supply routes and humanitarian shipping corridors essential to global food security from geopolitical disruptions, including through support for the Ukrainian Maritime Corridor, the Food for Ukraine initiative and the European Union-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes; enhance the protection of civilian vessels and critical port infrastructure in order to safeguard the safety of navigation and the stability of food supplies; and strengthen tracking mechanisms to prevent the entry, transit or purchase in international ports of stolen Ukrainian agricultural commodities originating from temporarily occupied territories;

24 June 2026

Tabled by Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA, Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA

If adopted, amendment 2 falls.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 13.3, replace the words after "Solidarity Lanes" with the following words:

", while enhancing the protection of civilian vessels and critical port infrastructure from daily attacks to safeguard the safety of navigation, stabilise food supplies, and urgently expand stationary and mobile port safety shelters to protect civilian lives under continuous bombardments; actively support the reconstruction of Ukraine’s maritime sector by co-operating with international financial institutions, notably the Council of Europe Development Bank, to secure funding for relevant recovery projects; and strictly enforce tracking mechanisms to reject falsified customs documentation and refuse the entry, transit, unloading, or purchase in international ports of stolen Ukrainian agricultural commodities originating from temporarily occupied territories, in line with global accountability and international law."

Explanatory note

The amendment advocates supporting Ukraine’s maritime reconstruction and expanding port safety via the Council of Europe Development Bank. It mandates strict tracking to reject falsified customs and stolen assets, directly targeting maritime laundering schemes used to hide stolen grain.

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Mr Markus WIECHEL, Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA

Falls if amendment 9 is adopted.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 13.3, replace the words after "the stability of food supplies" with the following sentences:

"The Assembly further emphasises the strategic importance of the ports of the Odesa region for Ukraine’s exports and global food security. It notes with grave concern that repeated attacks by the Russian Federation against port infrastructure, grain terminals, logistics facilities and civilian vessels operating in the Black Sea continue to undermine the safety of navigation, disrupt food supply chains and threaten access to food in import-dependent regions. The Assembly strongly condemns such attacks and calls on member States to support efforts aimed at strengthening the protection, recovery and resilience of Ukraine’s port and export infrastructure."

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

13.4encourage the establishment and strengthening of permanent, inclusive public-private co-ordination frameworks, drawing on the model of the European Food Security Crisis Preparedness and Response Mechanism, to ensure continuous risk monitoring, early detection of supply chain bottlenecks and synchronized responses between governments, international bodies and private food chain actors.

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Mr Oleksandr MEREZHKO, Mr Markus WIECHEL, Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 13.4, insert the following paragraph:

"support efforts to enhance the resilience, recovery and physical defense and energy resilience of Ukraine’s port, transport and energy infrastructure, recognising its importance for regional and global food security, and encourage the development of voluntary insurance and risk-mitigation mechanisms that facilitate the safe operation of civilian vessels and the uninterrupted export of agricultural products through the Black Sea."

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

24 June 2026

Tabled by Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA, Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 13.4, insert the following paragraph:

"support the establishment of a designated United Nations Special Envoy for Global Food Security in pursuance of the UN Security Council Resolution 2417 (2018), to lead and co-ordinate reporting on conflict and starvation, and to establish early warning mechanisms requiring the UN Secretary-General to report within 30 days of emerging crises."

Explanatory note

The amendment proposes creating a UN Special Envoy for Global Food Security and a 30-day early-warning trigger for the UN Secretary-General to brief the UNSC on deprivation. This aims to shift international interventions from reactive responses to proactive starvation prevention.

14Lastly, in order to strengthen the resilience of the food systems in each member State, the Assembly encourages them to:
14.1promote a balanced food market between local supply chains and exports, and support small and medium hold farmers, family farmers and other local food producers by providing them with diversified access to markets and stimulating demand for their products through targeted support and the introduction of criteria relating to local sourcing and community ties in public procurement, in particular as regards school catering, hospitals and care homes;

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Mike READER, Mr Gerardo GIOVAGNOLI, Ms Saskia KLUIT, Ms Gala VELDHOEN, Ms Sibel ARSLAN, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Baroness Lyn BROWN, Mr Perran MOON

Votes: 73 in favor 2 against 1 abstention

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 14.1, insert the following paragraph:

"ensure that trade-liberalisation and market-access measures adopted in response to crises are accompanied by effective safeguards and by fair-competition standards, so that the domestic agricultural producers and food-production base of receiving countries are not destabilised, and so that imported products are not produced to lower environmental, animal welfare or labour standards than those required of domestic producers;"

Explanatory note

The October 2025 EU–Ukraine agreement established this safeguard mechanism on domestic standards. This mirrors these safeguards into this report.

14.2prioritise agro-ecological systems based on crop diversification, reducing external inputs and strengthening short supply chains and, in the context of Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, provide financial, technical and logistical support for the sustainable and inclusive transition of the Ukrainian agricultural model, taking account of the diversity of production systems, rural livelihoods and long-term food security;
14.3support the strengthening of local agricultural production capacity in regions facing food insecurity through training, industry exchanges, the sharing of agro-ecological knowledge and partnerships, including Ukrainian initiatives aimed at training specialists for African agro-hubs, as well as youth-led, autonomous and digital-driven agricultural initiatives, including artificial intelligence and smart-farming technologies, with a view to promoting long-term food resilience, local self-sufficiency and sustainable food systems;
14.4implement Resolution 2577 (2024), “Guaranteeing the human right to food”, which calls on member States explicitly to enshrine the right to food in their constitutions and to pass framework legislation on the right to food.

24 June 2026

Tabled by Mr Mike READER, Mr Gerardo GIOVAGNOLI, Ms Saskia KLUIT, Ms Gala VELDHOEN, Ms Sibel ARSLAN, Dame Karen BRADLEY, Baroness Lyn BROWN, Mr Perran MOON

Votes: 74 in favor 3 against 0 abstention

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 14.4, insert the following paragraph:

"protect the rights of agricultural and food-system workers, in particular freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to organise and to bargain collectively as provided for in Articles 5 and 6 of the European Social Charter, respectively, and to extend labour and social protections to seasonal, temporary and migrant workers who are frequently excluded from them.

Explanatory note

Workers are essentially absent from the recommendation. Grounded in the ILO Decent Work framework and, critically, in the Council of Europe’s own European Social Charter this amendment addresses that.

15As well as measures to strengthen national resilience, the Assembly calls on member States to work collectively to promote sustainable and rights-based food systems, strengthen food security and resilience, and provide a model for democratic and rights-based food governance beyond the European region.