Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Israel’s purchase of grain from occupied Ukrainian territory “stolen” by Russia “cannot be legitimate business” and that Kyiv was readying sanctions against those attempting to profit from it.
“Another vessel carrying such grain has arrived at a port in Israel and is preparing to unload,” Zelensky said on X/Twitter. “This is not – and cannot be – legitimate business.”
“Israeli authorities cannot be unaware of which ships are arriving at the country’s ports and what cargo they are carrying,” he stated.
“Russia is systemically seizing grain on temporarily occupied Ukrainian land and organizing its export through individuals linked to the occupiers. Such schemes violate the laws of the State of Israel,” he said.
“Ukraine has taken all necessary steps through diplomatic channels to prevent such incidents. However, we see that yet another such vessel has not been stopped,” he added.
Zelensky also said that he instructed Kyiv’s foreign minister to “inform all partners of our state about the situation.”
Ukraine is preparing a “relevant sanctions package” and will “coordinate with European partners to ensure that the relevant individuals are included in European sanctions regimes,” he stated.
Discussing the summoning, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said that “Friendly Ukrainian-Israeli relations have the potential to benefit both countries, and Russia’s illegal trade with stolen Ukrainian grain should not undermine them.”
“It is difficult to understand Israel’s lack of appropriate response to Ukraine’s legitimate request regarding the previous vessel that delivered stolen goods to Haifa. Now that another such vessel has arrived in Haifa, we once again warn Israel against accepting the stolen grain and harming our relations,” he wrote on X.
Earlier this month, Ukraine requested urgent clarification from Israel following reports that a vessel allegedly linked to Russia’s “shadow fleet” docked at the Port of Haifa carrying grain originating from Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia.
Tobias Siegal and Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.
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