Kyiv raises alarm over Russian ship docking in Israel with stolen Ukrainian grain

Kyiv on April 14 appealed to Israel over a Russian vessel allegedly carrying grain stolen from Ukraine that docked at the Israeli port of Haifa.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said he broached the matter in a phone call with his Israeli counterpart, Gideon Sa'ar.

The Russian bulk carrier Abinsk reportedly arrived in Haifa on April 12 carrying nearly 44,000 tons of wheat that Ukrainian investigators say was taken from occupied territories.

The ship has since departed and appears to be heading back toward the Black Sea, journalist Kateryna Yaresko from the Myrotvorets Center's SeaKrime project reported on April 15.

Sybiha stressed that Russia's "illegal export of stolen Ukrainian agricultural products is part of Russia's broader war effort" and "must not be allowed."

Russia has seized millions of tons of Ukrainian grain from occupied territories, exporting it to global markets by its shadow fleet vessels.

The Ukrainian Embassy in Israel said the shipment may constitute a "blatant violation of international law and Ukraine's territorial sovereignty," according to Israeli media.

Ukrainian intelligence had been tracking Abinsk's preparations to depart from the Black Sea with the cargo, and Kyiv shared its findings with Israel in March, an undisclosed Ukrainian official told the Jerusalem Post.

Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko also reportedly met Israeli Ambassador in Kyiv Michael Brodsky on April 14 to request international legal assistance.

The Kyiv Independent has reached out to the Israeli Foreign Ministry for comment.

According to Yaresko, the ship originally departed from the Port of Kavkaz in Russia's Krasnodar Krai, where it was loaded with grain from occupied Ukrainian ports in ship-to-ship transfers.

The vessel then idled near Israeli shores since March 23 before receiving permission to dock from Israeli authorities, the journalist said.

Maritime traffic monitoring services currently show the Russian-flagged vessel in the Eastern Mediterranean, sailing toward the Dardanelles.

Ukrainian-Israeli relations during Russia's full-scale war have been complex, despite the two countries sharing a common adversary in Iran.

Israel has refrained from providing direct military aid to Kyiv, seeking to preserve a delicate balance in its ties with Russia despite Moscow's support for Tehran.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has notably omitted Israel from his Middle East tour, which was aimed at deepening security cooperation with key regional players amid Iranian aerial strikes.

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