A Ukraine-led UN declaration to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor famine was signed by 55 member states, marking a 44% increase since the previous similar declaration was presented in 2018, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Nov. 24.
Kuleba thanked the nations that signed the declaration.
"The horrors of the Holodomor should serve as a clear reminder to current and future generations of the need to prevent such atrocities and attempts to weaponize food, which are one of the key components of Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine," he added.
The Holodomor, a man-made famine that took place between 1932-33, occurred during Joseph Stalin's reign over the Soviet Union and caused an estimated 3.5 to 5 million Ukrainian deaths.
When presented on the occasion of the 85th anniversary in 2018, a similar declaration was signed by 38 nations.
The Canadian province of Prince Edward Island also voted on Nov. 23 to create a holiday commemorating the anniversary of the famine, becoming the 8th such Canadian province to do so.
The Canadian government recognized the Holodomor as a genocide in 2008.
A poll released by the Rating Sociology Group on Nov. 23 found that an overwhelming majority (92%) of Ukrainians believed the Holodomor to be a genocide against the Ukrainian people, an increase of 32% from when the question was asked in 2010.
Alexandra Keeler
